The Nexus Hero
by GlitchCrafter
Summary: Izuku Midoriya was born into a world of the extraordinary without a quirk. As a child he faced many hardships, injuries, and bullies. What if instead of powering through, he had lost sight of his goal? What if instead of striving to be great, he was slowly chipped away? When it all cumulates one day after school, we watch as an unexpected turn of events change Izuku's life forever.
1. Chapter 1

**HEY EVERYONE! So, Glitch is here again, and this time I'm tackling a new anime! For those of you who read my other work, fret not. FOTG is not going anywhere. I just hit some inspiration and decided that since I love My Hero Academia that I should give it a try too. Now, onto my disclaimers here. One, this work is inspired by the fanfic Viridescent by darkfire1220. If you haven't read this yet, I highly suggest giving it a try. Anyways, while that story may have inspired this one, I do promise that it is its own tale, and that it will be different (Though darkfire is a much better writer than I, so again - go read Viridescent too).**

 **I hope that I have addressed everything here, and hopefully you all like my new story! Chapter 2 will be up within the hour, so you'll have more than just the first bit to enjoy soon enough!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own My Hero Academia. Now onto the story!**

 **Chapter 1**

All men are not created equal.

"You're just a quirkless Deku!"

This is a truth that very few people come to realize. Most live in an idealized world. A world where heroes always won, were citizens were safe and they could live in peace. Izuku was an oddity, in more than one way. He did not live in this world. He knew the pain that a person could experience, the fear and hurt that live could provide. And he knew that these things did not solely come from villains.

An explosion reverberated against his side as he fell to the ground, curling up on instinct. It didn't hurt really. Or maybe it was just he was past the point of feeling it.

"Come on Deku, stand up!" A voice yelled.

Deku… useless… worthless… _quirkless_. In a world of the extraordinary, he was normal.

In this world, 80% of the population had abilities. The range was huge, from simple abilities like drawing objects closer to the insanely powerful abilities, such as the powers of the top heroes. It was very rare for people to be born without powers, and even rarer was someone who was quirkless striving for one of the most revered occupation in all of their society. A Pro Hero.

Izuku had wanted to be a hero for years, long before he had learned of his lack of powers. Back then he had been so full of hope, ready to take on the world. He was ready to be a hero alongside his best friend Katsuki Bakugo. Even after all others had lost hope, after his own mother told him she was sorry he would never reach his dream, he had pushed forward.

As he laid on the ground, the one that had put him there scoffed and walked away. The group that had surrounded them moved in now, like vultures after a kill.

"Why are you even still here Deku?"

"Ya Deku! Why haven't you just run away already? No one wants you!"

"Run away? Ya right, he should just kill himself already!"

Half an hour later, Izuku found himself in the bathroom. He winced as he washed the burn that had blistered on his side, a handprint burnt onto his skin. Sometimes Bakugo took it just a little too far. Days like this were not uncommon for Izuku though, ever since he had been labeled quirkless at the age of 4 other kids had started treating him different. At first it was subtle. Bakugo stopped wanting to hang out as much, finding better suited friends with powerful quirks. The others would look at him funny, and they avoided him like he had the plague. It was hard, but Izuku remained adamant that he would be a hero. Then the physical trauma started. They had been about 6, and at this point Izuku still followed Bakugo around whenever he could, as if by just being by someone with a quirk as great as his explosions would make him better somehow. And yet, despite his admiration of the other boy, he had been the only one that had stood up to him as he had bullied the younger child in front of them. That had been the start, and it had never really ended. Izuku couldn't count the amount of burns and bruises that he hid from his mother as he came home from school each day. Oddly, Bakugo didn't account for most of these, in fact he rarely actually did harm to Izuku. The teachers weren't much help though, they hardly cared for him any more than the students did, so he mostly just endured it. It had worked for the past 7 years, but he knew it was getting harder. Waking up each morning was becoming a trial, and getting to school was almost impossible. If it weren't for his mother he doubted he would even still be attending. His dreams were slipping away, and with every day that passed Izuku felt as if he was farther and farther from ever becoming a hero. Little did that 13 year old know, something would soon occur to change his life forever.

* * *

"Seriously Deku... why the hell are you still here?"

"W-w-w-what do you mean Kacchan?"

A scowl adorned the face of said teen, one of his hands on Izuku's shoulder. He could feel the heat seeping through the fabric, but not enough to hurt him or damage his jacket. With a rough shove he was pushed backwards into the wall. He had been cornered by Kacchan outside, and after the long day of ridicule and abuse Izuku didn't have the energy left to try and avoid him.

"I said what the hell are you doing here? Are you that stupid, useless?"

As he spoke he seemed to glare harder, as if trying to figure something out. Slowly he opened his mouth, growing louder and louder as he spoke.

"You're never going to be a damn hero. Ever. Even if by some random miracle you manage to get into U.A., even if by some chance you graduate with the rest of the bastards that are going to joining me, you'd be killed. Hell, Deku, I could kill you, right now, and you wouldn't be able to fight back! You're a quirkless Deku. _Useless_! So why the hell do you keep trying? What the hell drives you bastard?!"

Izuku struggled to keep his gaze as Bakugo grew louder and louder, practically yelling now. Honestly, it was surprising that no one had heard yet… usually these things drew a large crowd of students.

"I… I just w-w-want to be-"

"A hero? Helpful? Don't make me laugh, _Deku_. You aren't ever going to be a hero. You are a pathetic geek, useless little Deku following me around and trying to be something he isn't! I'm sure your mom is real proud of your goals, huh Deku?" Pushing him roughly to the ground, he began walking away while throwing his hands up in the air. "If you are so ready to die, then maybe you _should_ jump off a roof. Maybe you'll be reincarnated as someone who isn't such a pathetic weakling!"

With that he rounded the corner out of sight, and Izuku's world shattered.

He didn't know how long he wandered after that. His mind was blank, his soul broken as he mindlessly walked. It barely mattered to him at that moment anyways, nothing truly did. _Maybe you_ should _jump off a roof_. The words echoed in his skull. He didn't know why, he had been told to do similar things, much worse things, but he couldn't shake the feeling of dread that had settled in his chest.

 _Worthless. Jump off a bridge Izuku, why don't ya? What, are you going to cry? Weakling! I bet even if he did have a quirk he would still just be a useless little Deku! Useless, stupid nerd! Why do you even come to school anymore? No one wants you!_

The voices of the past haunted him as he walked along, farther and farther from the neighborhood his school and his house were in. Was he useless? He always tried to help, he tried so hard to put others before him and to make his mom proud. And yet, no one at school liked him. None of the teachers even looked at him anymore, at least not outside what they were forced to do as his supervisors while he was there. And that wasn't all. His mom cried every time he got home, every time she saw his burns or scrapes or cuts. She cried when he left too, he could often still hear her sobbing when he was just outside the door. He was always at his most miserable then. He knew she loved him, but he was hurting her so much, every day. All he wanted to do was be like All Might, to bring a smile to people's faces. But, he couldn't even bring a smile to his own face…

Izuku shivered as a cold breeze blew through the area. Startled, he looked around. He really was far from home, now being surrounded by large warehouses rather than the residential area his apartment was in. They looked fairly run down he noticed as he walked into what appeared to be a large open area. A large canal for flood water ran down the middle of the space, and on the far side it flowed into the largest building in the square. Izuku slowly approached, trying to ignore the feeling of hopelessness that was threatening to cascade down onto him.

The gate was open, the lock having been corroded a long time ago. The young boy slowly pushed on the gate, and with a screech it slowly opened, the rusted joints protesting slightly at the movement. Curious, Izuku pressed onwards. Once again he began wandering, though with more caution this time, and as he did he could feel the warring parts of his mind fighting for dominance. On one side was his natural curious self. What was made here? Why was it abandoned? Did anyone come here anymore? And yet, despite his questions he could not feel any of the joy that usually came with exploring a new place. Instead, the voices of his tormentors plagued his thoughts, tempering any happiness that threatened to break through. Soon he found himself on the final flight of stairs, an old sign labelled ROOF ACCESS pointing upwards. He shrugged as he continued on. He had already explored the rest of the spacious building, so why not here as well.

As he opened the door, he was awarded with a cold breeze blowing past him, as if seeking the warmth inside. Izuku trudged forward, coming out into the open area on the roof of the building. He looked around as he walked towards the edge.

It was beautiful, really. If it had been any other time Izuku was sure that he would have been staring wide eyed as he looked to every angle. In the distance he could see the larger apartment buildings that symbolized his home community. Looking in the opposite direction was a wonderful view of the bay. He wasn't actually that far from the bay now, probably only a few minutes walking. He was sure that the flood channel that ran through the lower levels of the building probably ran out to the water. The roof he as on was only 5 stories high, but among the one or two story warehouses that dominated the area it may as well have been a skyscraper. He could see for miles, and with the sun now setting it truly was a beautiful sight. Maybe, just maybe, this was what life was supposed to be like. He sighed as he wondered if everyone saw the rest of the world like this, as beautiful opposed frightening, warm and welcoming as opposed to painful. He smiled as he let himself fall into a sitting position, content to watch the fading sunlight on the water.

Izuku sat there for some time. He sat and watched the sunset, an odd peace filling him as he did. It was a terrifying peace, but at least the voices of his past finally had quieted down. As the sun slipped under the horizon Izuku stood up, a numbness in his limbs. He supposed his mother was probably worried, as it had been hours since school had ended.

 _Just another thing I've done to ruin her day_ , he thought in despair, _maybe she would be better off if I wasn't here. Maybe everyone would be_.

It was then, as he took his first step, that something stopped him. A single voice, singled out amongst the tormenting memories of his many bullies. A voice repeating that which had shattered him earlier, and now proved that he would not be fixed so easily. A voice that had never gone so far, and had never lied to him. Someone who, despite everything, he looked up to.

 _If you are so ready to die, then maybe you_ _ **should**_ _jump off a roof. Maybe you'll be reincarnated as someone who isn't such a pathetic weakling!_

Izuku's mind froze as his body turned back to the edge he had been standing at. Was that it? Was that his answer? Was this why his body had walked miles and miles to this abandoned district? Slowly, he felt himself taking step and step closer to the edge, slipping under the safety railing and coming to the very brink of roof. One more step. One more step and the bullying would stop, the oppressive taunts and abusive punishments from his peers would disappear. One more step and he would be free.

One more step and he would never make his mom cry again.

In the end, that was what decided it, and with an odd detachment Izuku stepped forwards into the open air.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone! As promised, here is chapter 2! I hope you guys like it, and so without preamble lets get to it, shall we!**

 **Disclaimer: still don't own it.**

 **Chapter 2**

Falling, Izuku decided was terrifying. The air rushed by him as he dropped like a stone, and as he felt the drop in his stomach the immediate fear hit him. He was going to die. These were his last moments, his final breaths. As he fell time seemed to slow, the ground still an eternity away from him. He couldn't find it within himself to scream, to cry out. If he were to describe it, breathless would be the closest he could come. It was all finally going to end. He could finally find peace. He felt his eyes close as he breathed in deeply.

A single tear leaked from his eye.

Suddenly, a massive explosion echoed across the bay. Eyes opening in a blur Izuku turned his head and watched as a building across the bay light up like a firework, the sirens and heroes could be heard even from where he was. People in danger, cries of pain and suffering, he could imagine their fear and their turmoil. People just across the water were losing their loved ones.

More tears leaked now from Izuku's eyes as he fell, his mind working faster and faster. Wasn't this what he wanted? To disappear? To not hurt his mother anymore? His eyes watched almost in slow motion as a secondary explosion was set off across the bay. As the flames rose into the air he felt the answer come to his mind.

 _This isn't going to stop her pain. People are dying, right there, and their loved ones will never be the same again. How can you do that to her?_

An image of All Might flashed before his eyes, his bright smile and drive to save everyone. _Everyone_. All Might never gave up hope, not even when the odds were stacked against him. He always smiled brightly, was always strong so others didn't have to be. **That** was what Izuku had wanted to be. That was still who Izuku wanted to be, the kind of hero that people would see, a fearless smile and a reassurance that everything was going to be okay.

 _I want to be a hero._

As the thought crossed Izuku's mind he felt even more tears flow. Tears for all that he was losing. If he died, how many people would suffer? His mother, for sure, but what about the people he didn't know? If he died, he would never become a hero, and how many people he could save were going to die because he wasn't there for them. He _wanted_ to be a hero, he _wanted_ to help people, and more than anything else he _wanted_ to show that he could be more than a useless Deku!

"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" He screamed, his eyes shutting once more as time seemed to speed up once more, and the concrete beneath rushed forwards to meet him. His voice was filled with his emotions, his rage and sorrow, his agony and heartbreak. In that yell he let loose every pent up emotion inside himself. Years of torment, years of hope, and years of determination let loose in a single moment, a plea for help. A plea to allow his story to continue.

A plea that was answered.

Izuku felt a tug in his gut, almost as if someone had just punched him, before a swirling feeling filled his senses. Rapidly blinking, Izuku felt his breath catch as his body touched the cold cement. However, it wasn't with the crash he had expected. In fact, it hadn't even felt as if he had fallen at all. Staring straight forward, Izuku could see the ledge that not 30 seconds ago he had stepped off of, the beginning of a fall that should have cost him his life. It should have ended with him as a stain on the ground, but here he lay, perfectly fine. Absentmindedly he reached out and wiped something wet off his cheek, but felt shock grip him as he pulled back to find blood staining his hand.

 _My blood?_ He thought in shock. Sure enough, a stream of blood was flowing from his nose, and one wet cough later he saw red spittle fly from his mouth as well. Slowly, he raised himself to his feet, wiping away at the blood. Already the flow had slowed down, so he wasn't worried, but he was still light-headed. He turned and looked back at the building he had tried to jump from. Succeeded at jumping from.

"What happened?" He muttered out loud, a habit of his, "I was sure that no one was in the area… who saved me?" Once again he went to rub at his face, the dried blood irritating him, but stopped as something flashed in his peripheral vision. A light, coming from…

"What?" Izuku nearly yelled as he looked down at his hands. In each hand small sparks of emerald electricity seemed to be lightly arcing across his skin. Looking at his arms it was easy to see that the rest of his body was likewise covered in the tiny emerald bolts, though they seemed to be subsiding quickly. Izuku stared until they disappeared, blinking and muttering. A strange feeling filled him as he looked back down at his hands. Thinking back to the fall, and the feeling he had felt in his chest, Izuku focussed on drawing out the feeling once again.

Despite knowing what was about to happen, Izuku was still shocked as the feeling returned, and his body was covered in sparks once again, before a slight spinning sensation filled his mind, and Izuku found himself instantly 2 feet backwards from where he had once stood, almost like he had just… flickered there. That was it… there was no other explanation. No other possible way… He, Izuku Midoriya, just a quirkless, useless Deku, had finally found the one thing he had been searching for over years.

He had a quirk!

It wasn't till later that he identified the strange feeling consuming him as something he hadn't felt for some time. Hope.

 _I AM GOING TO BE A HERO!_

* * *

1 YEAR LATER

* * *

Izuku smiled as he waved goodbye to his mother, giving her a big hug as he ran out of the door. A lot had changed in the last year, and Izuku was unbelievably pleased as he paused and heard his mother chuckle from the other side of the door. He could practically hear the smile on her lips, a far cry from the sobs that used to come from her as he had left for school.

Izuku was 14 now, nearly 15, and in the past year he had changed. He was still bullied, still ridiculed, but unlike before, Izuku knew that he wasn't what they all wanted him to believe he was. In a spur of the moment decision, Izuku had decided to keep his quirk secret from the school and all of the students there. In fact, the only ones that knew about his quirk were his mother and his doctor. As his quirk records were confidential, only the government had needed to know what he could do.

Tesseract. That was the name of Izuku's quirk. Even just thinking that still sent chills down Izuku's spine. Inside his body was what the doctor had described as a nexus of energy. The reason they hadn't caught it before hand was that it was too small to be detected, and too weak to do anything meaningful. However, a traumatic event had accelerated the growth of the nexus, forcing it to accept more energy and become large enough to save him. Izuku had looked down at that, but had adamantly refused to discuss what happened, only saying that he had gotten lost and almost fell. His mother did not need the guilt of his mistake on her shoulders he had decided.

Back to his quirk though, through some testing they had discovered that as of now he had two distinct abilities that he could perform with this nexus. The first was something that Izuku had since dubbed Flickering. The basics were he used the energy within him to break through space and teleport himself a short range. However, the farther he went the more his quirk pulled at his body for energy. This could lead to dangerous internal wounds if he wasn't careful. As of then, he could only teleport about 10 meters without hurting himself, though he was getting pretty good at teleporting multiple times quickly now. The second part of Tesseract they discovered was named Discharge. As it sounds, instead of internalizing the energy needed to flicker, Izuku simply let it loose. The result was a bolt of energy flying from his arm, emerald and practically harmless if the state of the Midoriya's couch was anything to go by when he had initially discovered this ability. Only slightly burning fabric wasn't the most powerful ability. It didn't go very far before dissipating either, and unlike flickering, Discharge took a lot of energy to do, more often than not leave Izuku's palms covered in burns.

Those discoveries took place over months of multiple tests, but that wasn't all that Izuku faced. No, just because he had a quirk now did not mean that he was going to make it as a Hero. He needed to become stronger, and not just in his quirk. He had spent nearly a week muttering about it before his mother had solved his problem with one simple question.

"If you want to get stronger, why don't you go work out dear?" She had said while cooking dinner one night. Izuku's eyes had widened, and he had immediately ran for the door, only to be halted as he realized the time.

The next day however, he scoured the nearby areas for the perfect place to start his training, and to his surprise he found 2 that would be perfect. The first was a nearby beach, called Dagobah Beach. According to the internet it had once been absolutely beautiful, but now it was covered in trash of all sorts and sizes. That was perfect, Izuku decided, as not only would it let him strain physically, but also do something to help the people, something he wanted more than anything else. And so his physical training started, not once using his quirk to help as he pushed himself to the limits.

His quirk training though was a little more complicated. He searched high and low across the area, and had eventually decided that there was only one place that he could train without being seen, as he still wanted to keep his quirk somewhat secret. Sure, it was on his file, but he doubted the teachers would actually look at that, not when they could ignore him instead. As for the students… it had taken some time, but he had finally realized that he didn't want them to be his friends just because he had a quirk now. If that would even change anything. They had gotten into the habit of bullying him by now. With that in mind, he had found exactly one location that had everything he needed to continue training Tesseract. There was only one problem.

It was the same place he had discovered it, the same place that sometime haunted his dreams. The abandoned warehouse district. It was desolate, removed, and provided obstacles galore for him to practice with. It took some getting used to, and Izuku refused to stand on that specific rooftop even once, but in the end he was glad that he was using the area to help him. He spent most of his time there or at the beach, training. What little time he had left was dedicated to homework and school, leaving little time for anything or anyone else. That, to his semi-relief and semi-dread included Bakugo. Luckily the blonde had decided that it was a good thing Izuku had stopped following him, and unlike the rest of the school had taken to mostly ignoring Izuku as opposed to outright bullying him.

Between his new free time, now that he had stopped following Kacchan around, and his mother's support he had increased his mobility skills by a large margin. Ironically, he took a lot of inspiration from Bakugo's own movement style, a fact that was sure to infuriate the teen if he ever found out. In a way Izuku even then looked up to the other boy, but he had come to face that he and Bakugo had not been friends for years, despite what he had wanted to think. Still, sometimes when Izuku saw him he could hear their voices from before he had gotten his quirk, back when they really were friends.

Izuku shook his head as he nearly tripped on some uneven sidewalk. In his own home he and his mother had just gotten used to him using his abilities. The doctor had suggested using it as much as possible to allow it to grow, especially if he wanted to apply for hero courses when he graduated and left for high school. Which of course he had responded with a very determined yes. In fact, he didn't just want to go to any Hero Course. No, there was only one that he had his eyes set on, the same one his Hero had attended and the top hero school in the country. UA High. He would prove to everyone who ever doubted him that he could be a hero. He would prove it to himself, prove that he wasn't the Deku that everyone thought he was. He would achieve his dream, he would be a hero like his role model and save the day with a smile. That was his goal, to be true hero just like All Might.

Little did he know just how accurate that statement truly was.

* * *

BANG!

The sound of something striking metal rang out across the area. Luckily, no one was nearby to hear it as three successive ringing noises followed, each one getting louder. Izuku paused as he began taking in deep breaths, trying to slow his heart rate slightly. After a moment he stretched and looked at his target. Today was one of his quirk training days, so here he was at the warehouse district. His mom had been very helpful when they had gone about setting up a place for him to train, and so the area that was once bare now housed a variety of different training implements scattered across the rooftops and even inside the abandoned buildings themselves. Between a variety of punching bags, metal targets, and even a special drone that had cost him his entire allowance over the past 6 months to get, the area he now dubbed as The Course was perfectly built to help him develop his quirk. To train he would release the drone, which came with a very specific setting, escape mode. Using GPS he had set the limits as to how high it could go and where in the area it could run. Then he put on a special bracelet that came with it and the drone would avoid the bracelet at all costs. The first couple times he had tried had been futile efforts (the first time it had taken him nearly 2 hours before he had given up). With the variability of the drone and the obstacle like structures of the run down warehouses he would always be constantly moving. On top of that, every time he ran across a punching bag or other similar structure he would practice his fighting for 5 minutes before beginning his search for the drone once more. It was exhausting, and with the mounting stress of the upcoming entrance exam, Izuku needed it now more than ever. Only 10 months remained. And yet, despite that pressure, there was a completely unrelated reason he was there that afternoon.

"ARGH!" He yelled out as his fist struck the metal plate. The plates were covered in soft pads to hit, a test in aiming your punches and kicks, and usually he could avoid hitting the actual metal and aim for these padded sections. It was made to test his skill, and punching the hard metal was a good reason to get good at it fast.

However, today was not a usual day. School had been the usual dreary experience. Izuku was putting just as much effort into his homework as he had into his hero training, and with top marks in his class it showed. He mused about a conversation he had with his mother about a month ago as he struck the targets a few more time before launching himself forward, flickering to an adjacent rooftop as he did.

"Are you sure you are doing okay Izuku?"

"What? Ya, of course mom. Why?"

"It's just… you don't have any friends Izuku. You don't get to have any fun, you train and train and do homework, but you don't get to just be a kid. I just want what's best for you Izuku." Small tears formed at the corners of her eyes as she sighed with frustration. Izuku had given her a small smile and had moved forward, enveloping his mother in a hug.

"I know mom, but I want to be a hero. I want this." He spoke softly, and a sigh was her response.

"I know Izuku, but I hope you will make some friends soon."

Real friends wasn't something Izuku had ever really known. The closest thing he had was Bakugo, and just earlier today he had shown once more how he lacked in that department. They had discussed where they were applying to for high school, and Izuku had been singled out by the teacher as wanting to go to UA. He had been approached after class by Bakugo and his 'friends', and before he could even attempt to leave his notebook had been stolen, damaged, and tossed into a small pond. Volume 13 of his quirk analysis books. Luckily, Izuku had managed to save it later, but those words had come from the blonde boy before he had left.

"Y'know, there is a way for you to become a hero Deku. Jump off the roof, and maybe you'll be reborn as someone who could!" His cackle had hung in the air as Izuku clenched his teeth, holding back the instinctive sparks that threatened to spread out across his skin. A few deep breaths later and he was on his way to The Course. He had been here for about two hours now.

"Kacchan… you can't just… tell people to… kill themselves!" He said to himself in between punches. He had worked extra hard today, trying to get rid of the feelings Kacchan's careless words brought up in him. A flicker of colour flashed in his peripheral vision and Izuku stilled. Lately the drone had seemed to be developing a personality of sorts, and if he didn't catch it within an hour it took to teasing him. He glanced out of the corner of his eye, and judged the distance.

 _15 meter? A little farther than I'm used to, but…_

A crackle of electricity followed the sparks that briefly covered him as he appeared beside the drone and with a quick grasp he took hold of it. He smiled as he did, though he felt a trickle of blood flow down his face as he coughed a little. It appeared 15 was still just a bit too far. His ribs ached a little and he winced, but that seemed to be the extent of the injury. That, and his exhaustion of course. With a sigh he walked over to his gear, putting his school uniform back on in one of the abandoned bathrooms. Soon he was walking away from his training area and back towards town. It wasn't anywhere near dark yet, so Izuku decided to take his time, strolling lazily as he recovered from his strenuous workout. As he did he found himself muttering to himself about how the workout went.

"The actual workouts are getting too easy. Maybe if I download a more erratic program for the drone? But the problem is that no villain is going to move in a pattern like the drone does, no matter how chaotic it is. The best option would be to find someone to practice with, but they would need high mobility. Kacchan would be amazing, but he doesn't know about my quirk and his reaction would be chaotic at best. Maybe if I study villain footage from the past few years? That could help…" This continued for a few minutes until he came to the edge of the residential area, not far from the park he and Bakugo used to play in as kids.

"Well," he finally said to himself, "At least I didn't pass out this time…"

"A pity, that."

Izuku froze as a voice, gargled and menacing broke through his thoughts. Looking down he noticed the sewer cap he was standing on shaking slightly.

"It would have so much easier to take out a flesh bag like you if you had been out like a light, but I guess this will have to do!" As the voice finished, a green goo exploded from the sewer, and Izuku immediately found himself struggling to get free.

"Isn't this great? I thought I was screwed when that brute showed up, but now I've found myself nice little flesh bag to hide in. How do you like that kid, you're going to be my puppet!"

Izuku pulled at the liquid goo that was trying to force its way into his mouth, but his struggles were for naught as his fingers couldn't get a grasp at the villain's body. He vaguely was aware of the villain saying something too him, but the longer he was without air the less he heard. Soon his vision began to blacken.

"I wonder what quirk I'll get to use once your mine." The sludge villain mused, and as he did Izuku felt his mind sharpen.

 _Quirks! That's right!_

The shock and fear had distracted him, but now a new determination filled him.

 _I am NOT USELESS!_

Izuku pushed with all his might, and a second later he was gasping for breath a few meters away from where he had once stood. The villain seemed confused, the perfect opportunity to escape. However, as Izuku turned to run a young voice came from the direction of the residential area.

"Hey Jaden! Look at this! I found a bug!"

Fear shot through Izuku again. He had forgotten about that, the park that he and Bakugo used to frequent was _extremely_ close to here, and by this time of the afternoon it was probably filled with kids. He looked back towards the villain, his mind racing. He could get away. Even with his exhaustion, it wouldn't be hard to flicker a few times until he was out of sight. The villain had no way of knowing how far he could teleport anyways, so he would be pretty safe. But the kids… they had no way of escaping. This villain had been willing to kill him, use him as a puppet of sorts. If he got one of those children, they wouldn't stand a chance. His mind made up, he called out, his voice shaky and trembling as he mustered all the courage he possibly could.

"H-h-h-hey! S-s-sludge guy!" He cringed as the mass of goo looked over at him, its form similar to that of a human now. He gulped before yelling out again. "Is t-that all you've g-g-got? C-come on, some of m-my classmates are stronger than y-you!" With that he turned and began running back to the warehouse district, a plan starting to form in his head.

"His body seems to be made from some sort of slime, so my physical attacks are probably going to be useless," He began to mutter but then paused for a moment, an idea striking him, "but I think I know how I can beat him!"

A shiver ran up his spine as he instinctively flickered a few feet away, narrowly avoiding a large glob of slime thrown by the villain.

"Get back here you brat! I'll show you strong!"

It only took a few minutes to make it back to his training course, but Izuku cringed as he finally flickered down into the empty flood channel. The villain was incredibly fast, if he couldn't flicker out of the way he had no doubt he would have been caught way before getting here. With a thud the sludge man slammed into the ground a few feet away from him. Izuku took a deep breath before running forwards again. He was almost there!

"Where are you going kid? You're gunna run out of energy eventually! You look exhausted!" Another lunge avoided by a flicker told Izuku that the villain was right, the pain in his chest and blood on his cheek warning signs that he was passing his limit.

 _I'm almost there, almost there!_

Wheezing, he ran down the canal and into the building at the beginning of the flood canal, running though one set of floodgates before coming to a stop before another closed floodgate that blocked further progress. He was trapped. Fortunately, so was the villain.

"Nowhere to run now kid, you ready to give up?" His voice made Izuku squirm slightly, it was distorted and wrong. He swallowed and gave a shaky smile. His mind flashed to All Might and his fearless smile. While he was nowhere near that level, at least he could do this.

"I won't give up! C-come and get me!" Izuku watched as the villain lunged, time seeming to slow as his mind raced.

 _There's no way I could beat a quirk like his. With an amorphous body like his my physical attacks would be useless. I could have used Discharge, but it isn't very strong and would have left me useless, especially since I am already exhausted. That's why I lead him here!_

To the villain, it looked as if the young been he had been chasing was finally out of juice. He was just standing there staring at him, seemingly lost in thought as the villain bore down upon him. If he could take over this kid he would be in a good spot, this boy's teleporting could be extremely useful. His fist raised into the air as he screamed out, swinging it at the brat that had dared to evade him. However, it wasn't until he had made contact with the child, his fist touching the boy's skin, that he realized something key.

The boy wasn't looking at _him_. He was looking past him.

In a flash of sparks the boy disappeared, and a small sound from behind him revealed where he had gone.

"You can't run forever!" he yelled as he turned, only to stop as he saw where the boy was. All the way on the other side of the massive room, outside of the flood channel and standing by a control panel of some sort. Blood was flowing freely from his nose, and a trickle flowed out of his lip as he showed a feral smiled, a far cry from the shy kid that had been yelling at him just a few moments earlier. His hand was holding a large switch, which he pulled with a victorious smirk. As he did a few things happened in quick succession.

Instantly the flood gate that was now behind him opened as the one that they had entered in slammed shut. A wave of water rushed out to slam into the body of the villain, sweeping him away with the powerful current.

 _Hah, this idiot boy thinks that some water will be able to –_

The villain's thoughts were interrupted as pain filled his body, encompassing his entire mind. Izuku coughed, a strained laugh escaping his lips as he let go of the lever. He had noticed some time ago while exploring the warehouses that chambers like this were common along the flood canal. Massive reservoirs filled with rain water were situated along the empty canal. These chambers used those reservoirs to clean the canal, washing away as much as they could in-between the times that the flood canal was naturally filled by creating powerful waves that were released. However, when he had been initially exploring he had discovered a few problems with the system. It was old, and decaying, and so a few of the safety measures had been degraded over the years, just like it had here. Normally, while strong, that wave wouldn't have done much more than annoy the sludge villain. Izuku knew that he needed something more powerful, and luckily this particular water gate had a slight issue. Normally all electrical equipment was covered and protected to prevent any accidents, but in this gate area a large amount of the protection had been destroyed, leaving wires and equipment open for contact with the raging waters. The result was an electrified pool of turbulent currents, and Izuku was sure that it would effective.

He sighed as he dropped into a sitting position. That last flicker had been a lot farther than his usually 10 meter range. If he had to guess he would have had to say it was more like 50; he had tried to get as far away from the controls as he could have before flickering so the villain wouldn't have time to respond. He winced as he felt the consequence of that choice, his chest aching as sparks sputtered weakly against his skin. His wince was also partially for his phone, which he could now see floating in the water a little ways into the flooded area. He must have dropped it while still in the canal. Sighing he let his head drop, relieved at the sense of relaxation that came with the gesture.

A sound gained his attention. A lurching, pain filled groan. Izuku lifted his head and felt dread creep up his spine as a familiar shape made its way out of the water.

"You stupid brat, that hurt." The villain growled as he raised himself higher. He was obviously hurt, but nowhere near as much as he should have been with that much electricity. Izuku didn't have much more time to think of it though as he struggled to move, his body resisting as he tried. "I don't think so kid. Not so cocky now, huh?"

Izuku watched as the villain raised his arm up in the air, his body solidifying into a large fist.

"Say goodbye brat!"

 **"DETROIT SMASH!"**

In the time it took for Izuku to blink, the villain was blown back, breaking apart as he hit the wall. His mind barely had time to catch up to that fact as a deep voice, one that had always inspired confidence and determination in Izuku reached his ears.

 **"HAVE NO FEAR MY BOY. YOU ARE SAFE NOW, FOR I AM HERE."**

The number one pro hero… His hero… The one that had always inspired him…

Izuku tried to stand, to turn and see the one and only Symbol of Peace, but as he did black dots danced in her eyes, and the world turned dark. Focusing, he managed to get out a weak rasp as he collapsed.

"All Might?"

* * *

Izuku woke as a large hand patted his face. His eyes squinted as he adjusted to the bright sky. Where was he? The last he remembered was fight, the villain, the water, his failed plan, and then…

Eyes wide he sat up, ignoring the biting pain that came from his chest as he did. He knew from experience that he wouldn't be able to move his legs for at least a half hour, not with any real purpose. He could probably stand though.

" **WELL MY BOY, I AM IMPRESSED!"** the familiar voice boomed next to him. Izuku turned and his eyes widened as he took in the hero in front of him. Shakily he raised to his feet.

"A-A-A-All Might!"

 **"INDEED, IT IS I. I HAVE TO SAY, YOU DID A GREAT THING HERE TODAY. I WATCHED THE WHOLE THING! WELL, MOST OF IT. I DIDN'T GET TO SEE MUCH ONCE YOU GOT INDOORS, BUT DON'T WORRY! I WAS ALWAYS READY TO INTERVENE IF YOU NEEDED ME. TELL ME, WHAT IS YOUR NAME?"**

Izuku felt his mind snap back from the trance he was in before he answered, the shock of the pain and meeting his hero the only things keeping him standing.

"I-Izuku M-M-Midoriya!" He said, the Hero nodding in response.

 **"WELL YOUNG MIDORIYA, I WISH YOU THE BEST, BUT I REALLY MUST BE HANDING THIS FELLOW,"** he tapped his pants which now had a few plastic bottles filled with… goop? Izuku felt his shock grow as he realized that must be the villain, **"OVER TO THE POLICE. NOW STAND BACK, I'M TAKING OFF!"**

Taking a few steps away, All Might bent his legs, preparing to launch away. Izuku opened his mouth to call out to the Pro, but as he did he felt something inside him lurch. The taste of blood filled his mouth, his legs were rapidly weakening, and what remained of his strength began to fade. Panic set in as Izuku realized he must have been more hurt than he realized. If he was too badly hurt, and All Might left, how was he ever going to get home? If he couldn't move he would be stuck here for who knows how long, with no way to call for help. Taking a deep breath, Izuku braced himself for the pain as he did the only thing his addled brain could think of. He flickered.

All Might launched off at high velocity, high above the clouds. He was almost out of time, but it looks like he was able to track down the villain. Looking down, his eyes searched for the easiest place to land. There were plenty of buildings in this area, so he expected he could find a good spot.

What he did not expect to see was a set of terrified green eyes staring back at him.

" **WHAT THE HECK KID! YOU CAN'T JUST JUMP ON TO SOMEONE LIKE THAT! LET GO!"** Izuku's looked up to him and cringed, but didn't respond. He did however look down with wide eyes and All Might caught his mistake. **"AH, YES. ONE MOMENT YOUNG MIDORIYA, I WILL SET US DOWN AND _THEN_ YOU CAN LET GO." **All Might rolled his eyes at the boy, then furrowed them as a small cough followed by some blood escaped his lips.

 ** _"CRAP"_**

* * *

They touched down on a roof not far from one of the shopping districts. All Might let the boy down and stretched a bit, pushing as hard as he could to maintain his muscle form in front of this kid.

 **"NOW KID, I GET THAT YOU'RE A FAN AND EVERYTHING, BUT WHAT YOU DID WAS DANGEROUS. YOU NEED TO THINK BEFORE TAKING ACTION, OTHERWISE YOU MAY FIND YOURSELF IN A SITUATION WHERE YOU CAN'T HANDLE YOURSE-"**

As he turned to continue his quick lecture of the young man, All Might suddenly stopped. Steam began to rise from his body and Izuku watched as he stumbled, gripping the railing as the steam covered him completely. Worry changed to shock as the steam faded and in the place of the massive hero stood a skeleton like man, blood pouring from his mouth. In his surprise he couldn't keep quiet anymore, and as his mouth opened to speak a spray of blood left it too. The two stared at each other for a moment, shock evident on both their faces before the skinny man rushed over to the younger one.

"Oh crap kid, are you alright!" He asked as he approached. Izuku nodded as All Might helped him sit up.

"Ya, I'm okay. This is just what happens when I use my quirk too much, or go farther than I usually can. My body can't take it, my Quirk hasn't developed the power it needs yet." All Might looked down at him for a moment before his odd coloured eyes narrowed.

"Power huh?" He shook his head. "I guess an apology is in order then. You didn't grab onto me just for show, right?" This time Izuku shook his head.

"No, I didn't know how long it would take for me to be alright again, and I didn't want to risk walking home alone in the middle of the night or passing out on the street."

"Smart kid, I'll give you that. You're quite the adventurous one, aren't you?" Izuku shrugged and looked away, taking a deep breath as some of his strength returned to him.

"N-n-no, not really." All Might cocked a brow at him.

"Then what was all that with the villain?"

"We were too close to the park… I… I c-couldn't let him attack those kids, so I d-did what I could to keep his attention on me. I figured I could lead him away, then at least they wouldn't be in danger. I know it was reckless, but…" A hand on his shoulder stopped him cold. His eyes glanced up at his hero, though he may have appeared differently, who was staring at him intently.

"Young Midoriya, what you did there was brave, brave beyond any expectations I had for one as young as you. I take it you want to be a hero one day?" Izuku gave a small nod and a whisper.

"More than anything." His whisper grew into a quiet voice, "I have wanted it since I was a kid, to be able to grow into a hero like you, one that could save people and make them feel safe! I want them to see my fearless smile and know that everything is going to be alright!" By the end he was speaking at a normal level, and Toshinori could see the dedication and determination in the young man's eyes. Those emotions faded though, as a new emotion came forth. Curiosity.

"All Might… how did… how… what…?" His questions trailed off, but Toshinori nodded and gestured to himself.

"How did this happen?" A nod. "It isn't pretty kid. You sure you want to hear it?" Another nod. "Alright then, don't say I didn't warn ya."

The next few minutes went by incredibly slowly for Izuku, the terrifying idea of someone strong enough to permanently cripple All Might was insane, even more so knowing that the fight had somehow happened without anyone knowing (because Izuku was sure he would have found mention of it _somewhere_ online). Every word that came from the Pro's mouth sent emotion after emotion through the boy.

"So you see kid, being a hero isn't about the glory. It isn't about fun and games. Sometimes, you come across people that are just too strong, too powerful to beat. Every hero lives with the fear of knowing that one day they may run into a villain they can't beat. That smile you want to have, the smile I use when I'm on the job? There's plenty of fear behind that smile Young Midoriya. Being a hero is tough kid, are you sure you have what it takes?"

By this point Izuku was feeling much better, enough to stand and walk at least. He probably wouldn't be doing anything more strenuous than that though, as he could still feel the pain in his chest that came with overuse. Izuku opened his mouth to respond, but before he could a resounding explosion shook the ground, smoke billowing into the sky not too far away. Both of the two looked at each other before glancing down at All Might's pockets, where a bottle of goo once resided. In an instant the two were moving towards the door on the roof as fast as their exhausted and decrepit bodies could, the same thought running through their heads.

 _THE SLUDGE VILLAIN!_

* * *

 **And there we go! Welcome to the beginning of The Nexus Hero! I hope you have all enjoyed reading my story, and I look forward to posting more chapters as I finish them! Until then, Glitch out!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone! Glitch here. So I am back with another chapter of Nexus Hero! Sorry if it is a bit short, but I when I hit the end I decided that I would rather the next bit be in a different chapter. Hopefully it doesn't bug you guys too much. Anyways, please enjoy the chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I still don't own BNHA, even though I really wish I did.**

 **Now onto the chapter!**

 **EDIT: Sorry, fixed a couple errors really fast, haha.**

 **Chapter 3**

Angry would be a good word to describe how the young blonde was feeling. That stupid nerd… he was always in the way. What the hell was he thinking, trying to get into UA? The two boys following him were prattling on and on, and between Deku's stupidity and their nonsense he was rather done with it all.

"I bet we could find our way into some of _those_ clubs…" One of them trailed off and the other snickered. Were these idiots really still talking? They weren't as bad as some of the other extras at their school, but still.

"Shut up you idiots! Did you forget, I'm trying to get into UA. If you bastards want to get caught then go ahead, I'm trying to get into the top school, I can't do stupid stuff like that!"

"That's Bakugo for you!"

"Driven as ever!"

Bakugo rolled his eyes as the two praised him. They were like vultures, picking off the scraps of his popularity. Didn't matter, they would be left behind once he left for UA, he thought as he kicked a bottle in the alley way.

He didn't realize his mistake until it was too late.

* * *

Izuku gasped as he ran alongside All Might. If he had been told that just a few hours ago, that he would spend his afternoon running right next to his greatest hero he would have either laughed or fainted at the prospect. And yet, despite his excitement, this was far from the dreams he once had of this moment. All Might looked like a skeleton, he was in too much pain to be considered normal, and both of them had blood dribbling down from their mouths. They were weak, wounded, and running straight for a villain they had let escape. No, this was definitely not what he had thought meeting All Might for the first time would be.

"Get back!" An authoritative voice called out as another explosion rocked the street. Izuku pushed into the crowd, his small frame able to slip through the crowd. As he came to the front he was met with a horrific scene. The villain that had chased him down earlier was indeed free again, and this time he seemed less content with sneaking around. Someone was trapped within his body, struggling to get out. His mocking voice filled the air as he laughed at the heroes attempts to intervene, trying to stop him while dealing with all the fire in the area.

 _Wait, fire?_

When the sludge monster had been chasing him, he hadn't shown any signs of fire usage. If he had then Izuku should have seen it. That meant that either he had made something explode, or that whoever was in that mess of goo was…

His thoughts were interrupted as a massive explosion cleared some of the sludge away from person inside, giving him an unobstructed view of the victim. As the smoke faded from the explosion, a strangled gasp left him.

"Kacchan?!"

Too soon for comfort the sludge was back, taking Bakugo's breath away once more. Izuku looked around in a panic, looking to the other heroes in the area. Looking for someone to save Bakugo, someone to help. But, each hero he looked to was already busy protecting others, putting out fires and saving civilians. Bakugo's random explosions weren't helping either, but it seemed that they were also giving him a few moments to breathe every few seconds. Izuku looked back and forth between them before turning his gaze to the back of the crowd, where the one hero Izuku could always count on was standing.

As his eyes landed on his hero, he knew that something was wrong. The skeleton-like man was grasping his side where his injury was. His eyes screamed agony as he stared at the situation, and even from his position at the front of the crowd he could see the indecision.

 _He's all out of time… he wants to save him, but he can't…_

A second passed and All Might looked up, his eyes meeting Izuku's. Izuku felt tears come to his eyes as All Might turned away, looking down in shame. In _shame_. Izuku shook his head and turned back to the horror in front of him, his fear mounting. All Might, the greatest hero in the world, was helpless. No one could help. Kacchan was going to…

For the second time in 30 seconds, Izuku found himself meeting someone's eyes. Only this time, Izuku was shocked by what he saw. For just a moment, his eyes met those of Bakugo, the latter's mouth having been covered by sludge once more. Izuku knew the look in his eyes, he had seen the same look in his own eyes when looking in the mirror every day, until he had discovered his quirk. It was fear. That thought alone shook Izuku; fear and Bakugo did not seem like they could be related, unless it was someone being afraid of him. For him to show fear now was terrifying.

The glance only lasted for a second, but that was all Izuku needed. Before he knew what he was doing, he had slipped under the police tape and began running towards the commotion. Behind him he heard the heroes he passed yelling at him to get back, but at that point it didn't matter what he wanted, his body was moving. Izuku winced as his muscles protested, but found that despite the pain he couldn't stop. It didn't matter that it hurt, it didn't matter that he had overused his power that day. None of that had factored in when he had moved. In fact, nothing at all had factored in, his body had moved on its own.

His musings came to an end as reality set in. Eyes wide, he ducked as an explosion was shot off overhead, and his mind began racing. He was coming up on the villain now, and he had no plan to deal with him. He couldn't attack it, nothing he would do could even hurt it.

 _I have to do something!_

Determined, Izuku slipped his backpack off his back. Idly, he wondered how it had even remained on his back this entire time. Grabbing it he spun, releasing it a few moments ago aiming for the one part of the body he could see that wasn't made of sludge. The villain roared as a corner of a textbook dug into his eye, and Izuku smiled in relief as the sludge loosened its grip on the blonde boy.

"Deku?" said boy rasped, his voice filled with anger. Izuku smiled (or at least tried to) and grabbed the blonde by his arm, pulling with all his might,

"H-h-hey, Kacchan!"

"What the hell are you doing here?" His voice, while still angry, had a tinge of confusion to it.

"I couldn't just sit there Kacchan! My legs just started m-moving!" A glare was given at this, but as an angry roar filled the air Bakugo began yelling.

"YOU AGAIN? WHAT THE HELL YOU LITTLE BRAT?!"

"Crap! Alright you quirkless nerd, BACK THE HELL OFF!" Izuku hesitated for half a second, but something in Bakugo's red eyes made him take the half step back. It was a good thing he did too, as a massive explosion came out of the arm still entirely encased in sludge, stronger than Izuku had ever seen before. Smoke filled the area, but Izuku could still see enough. Though the explosion had blown a large amount of the sludge away, it still had a good grip on Bakugo's now shaking arm. If it was still holding on after that massive explosion, then there was no way that he was going to be able to help.

 _Unless… this is going to hurt._

Izuku gulped before aiming his hand at the sludge villain. Reaching deep inside him he felt for his nexus. It was there, but weak. He would have to go beyond his normal limits here. Taking a deep breath, he pushed with all he could. He would just have to hope that the smoke was enough to hide this from Bakugo.

"Discharge!" For a scary moment, nothing happened. The villain was already recovering from the explosion, his body reforming. Bakugo was screaming at him again, and he could see the pros rushing forward as the sludge surged towards him. Suddenly, a pain like no other filled Izuku and a bolt of emerald energy leapt from his hand, travelling quickly and precisely to hit the one of the few parts of the villain that wasn't sludge, the same part that he had hit earlier. Only this time instead of a textbook connecting with his eye, something far more painful connected with it. As it hit the villain reared back again, shrieking in pain.

Using the distraction, Izuku pulled as hard as he could, ignoring the agony coming from his chest and the pain from his now burnt hand. Slowly, yet surely, Bakugo was pulled from the gunk. With one final blast from his hand he was free, but far from safe.

"You brats! That's it, I'm done with this!" The two boys, exhausted, watched as the villain swelled, raising before the like a wave. Izuku looked at Bakugo, who was scowling at the villain with shaking hands, and turned as well. He smiled shakily as All Might's words filled his head.

 _There's plenty of fear behind that smile Young Midoriya._

"Come and get us!" Izuku yelled, a strange feeling of courage filling him. There was a lot of fear behind his smile too, but if he didn't smile now, how would he ever smile in the future?

In a moment eerily similar to earlier that day, Izuku watched as the now charging villain looming over them was suddenly missing, and in his place…

 **"You two… I am sorry."** All Might said slowly, his voice much quieter than usual. Izuku could see the steam rising from his body, well hidden by the smoke. He was now between the villain and the kids, somehow grasping the sludge. **"I very nearly did not make it here in time, I almost did not live up to my own standards. Facing evil without fear is not true heroism. You two have shown that today."** He began to push forward, his voice getting louder, **"NO, IT IS FACING EVIL DESPITE FEAR, FACING DOWN ODDS THAT WOULD MAKE SOME HESITATE BY CONQUERING THAT TERROR, THAT IS THE MARK OF A TRUE HERO! THANK YOU, FOR SHOWING THAT TO ME ONCE MORE. NOW, TO DEAL WITH THIS SLUDGE. YOUR FATE WAS SEALED, VILLAIN, SINCE THE MOMENT YOU DECIDED TO STEAL IN THIS CITY! NOW, HERE WE GO, DEEEETTTRRROOOOIIIITTTT…SMAAAAAAAASH!**

With a massive uppercut, the villain was sent flying, splitting into clumps of sludge. A swirling vortex of wind followed the punch, the wind pressure causing a twister to be sent flying into the sky. Izuku watched with wide eyes as the clouds began to gather, and rain quickly began to fall.

"Holy crap, he changed the damn weather…" Bakugo muttered from beside him. Numbly, Izuku recognized that this was the only time in years that Bakugo had spoken in his presence in a non-angry voice. For that moment, Izuku closed his eyes and felt peace, his mind lost in simpler days.

The feeling fled quickly as the pain in his chest spiked. His breath seized as the shock started to wear off, his body reacting to the sudden and unbearable pain. His legs gave out as he felt a shudder pass through him, and once again the taste of blood filled his mouth. He let out a rasp before falling to the floor. Through foggy vision he saw Bakugo looking down at him before a large voice filled his ears.

"What the hell…"

 **"MOVE ASIDE PLEASE, THIS BOY NEEDS A HOSPITAL!"**

A pair of large arms picked him up, and for the second time that day Izuku felt himself drift into unconsciousness.

A confused Bakugo was left staring after the two as All Might, THE All Might, sprinted away, Deku in his arms. Why was Deku so hurt? He didn't even get hit! Speaking of getting hit, why did the sludge villain recoil after Deku yelled discharge? What did that even mean? He hadn't seen a weapon or anything. On top of that, WHAT DID THAT USELESS NERD THINK HE WAS DOING! HE DIDN'T NEED HELP, HE HAD THAT COMPLETELY UNDER HIS CONTROL!

As the other pro heroes approached him, Bakugo glared in the direction the green haired Deku had been whisked off in, and silently vowed he would get to the bottom of this.

* * *

Izuku blinked rapidly as he awoke, a beeping sound the only thing he could hear. He squinted as a bright light shined into his eyes, followed by a satisfied sigh.

"What…" his voiced rasped out. Suddenly, the face of a nurse filled his vision, smiling down upon him.

"Hello there! Well, you gave us quite the fright there young man. When All Might arrived holding you we thought you were a lot worse off than you were. You looked terribly injured. Not to worry though! We have some of the most useful healing quirks in the city, so there was no lasting damage!" Having said her piece the nurse began turning to leave, but she paused at the door before completely leaving.

"We saw what you did on the television. While as a nurse I can't condone putting yourself in danger, we all thought it was very brave. I think you'll be pleased to hear that the explosion boy was perfectly fine, didn't even have to go to a hospital. I'll be back in an hour or so and you'll be fine to be released. We have already contacted your mother, per your emergency contact info we found in your wallet. Now get some rest." With that she was gone, and Izuku was alone to finally catch his breath. A quick glance out the window showed that it was much later than it had been, the setting sun quite beautifully set against the skyline of the city.

"It's quite the sight, right kid?" Izuku jumped as a voice spoke, and turning he looked towards the entrance to his room. Standing there, in all his skeleton-like glory, was his hero.

"A-All Might?" He asked. The man nodded, before glancing around.

"Ya ya, it's me. But do me a favour kid, when I'm like this just call me Toshinori, or at least just be quiet about it, got it? There aren't many people that know about all this." Looking down he gestured to his decrepit body. Izuku nodded in response, not trusting his voice.

"All right kid, about today with that villain. Do you know why I am here?" Izuku nodded and looked down.

"I'm… I'm sorry All… T-Toshinori." Izuku frowned. That felt weird. He didn't think he'd be calling him that for a while. "I jumped into the alley without thinking, I didn't even know what I was doing and I was terrified, but my body just moved without me even thinking, I just…" As he trailed off he heard a shuffle of clothing before a thin hand placed itself on his shoulder. Looking up he was visited with the sight of All Might smiling down at him. However, this smile was far from the smile he usually showed, fearless and brave. This smile was… sad, and yet also contained something more as well.

"Young Midoriya, you misunderstand me. I am not here to berate you. I am here to congratulate you." Izuku's eyes went wide, a question simmering within them. "I can't say that simply rushing in was a smart move Midoriya, but you still did it. You still did it. Even when the situation was helpless, when pro heroes including myself were hesitating, you took the first step."

"But All Might! I just told you, I didn't mean too! My body-"

"Moved by itself. I know kid. And that, that is something special. It doesn't matter where they were from, or why they wanted to be what they are, every single pro that has went on to become a great hero has had one thing in common. Each one has felt it, has had their body move without a thought, without consideration of themselves as they acted to save others! Izuku Midoriya, what I saw today was a testament to that, a true example of heroism! I asked you earlier if you thought you had what it takes to be a hero…" Izuku felt tears come to his eyes as All Might smiled brightly and looked down on him. He wiped them away, but they simply returned. This was what he had needed, all those years ago. When the doctor had looked at him and told him he was quirkless, when his dreams had broken down in front of him. This was what his heart had called for, and yet had never received.

"Young Midoriya, what is it that drives you? What do you want more than anything in the world?" The young boy blinked away the tears and smiled as courageously as he could. There was only one answer he could give.

"I want to be a hero!" He yelled. For a moment silence reigned. Then a chuckle broke through the serenity. All Might took his hand off his shoulder and stepped back.

"Izuku. You will be a hero, of that I have no doubt, and with my help you will be the greatest hero to ever live!" Izuku felt his breath leave him, but before his tears could even fall the Pro continued.

"Yes, I have chosen you, Young Izuku Midoriya! You will replace me, become the next in a line of holders of this sacred torch! You are definitely heroic my boy, but soon you will be much more. With my power you will become the new Symbol of Peace, you will become the greatest hero in the world, a beacon of hope and heroism. Izuku, will you accept my power, my quirk, and become my successor?"

Izuku could only blink.

"Wait, what?"

* * *

A yawn escaped Izuku's lips as he stared at his teacher. They were so close to the end of class. It had only been a few days since the sludge villain incident, and Izuku could barely focus. All Might's words echoed through his head and his explanation racked his mind. A quirk that could be transferred? A power like All Might's, able to be given to be him? He still didn't completely understand why the hero had chosen him. A buzz in his pocket distracted him, and he discreetly peeked at the screen of his phone. Normally he wouldn't even think of doing something such as this in class, but the teacher was having them evaluate each other's quirks today. He had done that months ago, practically as soon as he had met them, and if he was being honest none of them truly cared about his opinions anyways. Still, it wouldn't be great if he was caught with his phone out.

FROM: TOSHINORI

 _Hey kid, meet me later at Dagobah Beach, alright? Around 4._

Reading the message quickly, Izuku slipped his phone back into his pocket with shaking hands. When All Might had first told him about his quirk, sitting there in the small hospital room, Izuku had thought he was crazy. Who had ever heard of a quirk like that? Transferring his power? But as the man talked Izuku couldn't help but entertain the thought that he may be telling the truth. That spark became a rushing flame, and after taking All Might's advice, "Don't think about it so much kid. You have to adapt to this new reality, I can give you my quirk!"

Still… this was so difficult to comprehend some times. They had exchanged numbers before his mother had arrived, eyes filled with tears. He had been waiting, and finally, _finally_ , he had messaged him. Tonight he would begin his training. Tonight would be the beginning of his journey towards being a hero. As soon as the bell rang Izuku bolted from his seat. In his excitement and nervousness, he almost missed the suspicious glare of a certain blonde. It did little to dissuade his happiness though, as he ran out of the building with more excitement than he had in years.

As he made his way through the streets and the overwhelming joy faded some, Bakugo's glare made its way back into his mind. He would have to be careful, the explosion happy blonde wasn't stupid, and Izuku had gone this long without spilling his secret. As it was, Bakugo had cornered him the day after the incident and had made it VERY clear that he hadn't needed his help, accentuated with a curses and a final, "JUST REMEMBER YOU'RE STILL A USELESS DEKU, YOU GOT THAT?!" He doubted his stuttered assurances were far from whatever it was Kacchan was looking for.

He sighed as he noticed his destination approaching. He and Bakugo were always at odds, but now he had something more important to focus on. His gaze passed over the trashy beach, and a satisfied smile was left on his face. It was by no means clean, but it was looking a lot better than it had before he had started cleaning it.

After a moment he noticed a figure staring out onto the water. Even from this distance it was easy to tell exactly who it was. The skinny man turned as he approached, a frown on his face. Izuku ran the last few meters and came to a stop beside the pro.

"Hey A-All Might! What's w-wrong?" The hero chuckled.

"We're going to have to work on that stutter Young Midoriya." The hero turned back to the heaps of garbage and sighed. "To be honest with you, I had planned on meeting with you today and starting your training here. You see kid, One For All is an incredible power, but without training your body first you wouldn't be handle even holding it your body, let alone using it! You would probably explode just from receiving it."

"Explode?!" Izuku screamed. All Might laughed at the youth and swept his arms in a gesture at the trash.

"Yup! That's why I wanted you to start building up your body here, cleaning up the beach. People often forget that being a hero is about helping people, the community, and not about the fame and fortune. Unfortunately, it looks like someone has already started cleaning up here…"

Izuku blinked before blushing and stuttering out a reply.

"O-O-Oh, that w-was me…"

"WHAT?" The hero yelled, blood spraying from his mouth, Izuku frantically began waving his arms and tried to explain.

"W-W-Well I already knew that I-I needed to b-be stronger, physically and w-w-with my quirk!" As he talked his new mentor stared wide eyed as his loud frantic words turned into constant muttering. "I have already pushed my quirk to the limit, so I need to be stronger so I can provide more energy. Now that I am going to be receiving One for All, I guess that the whole power issue for Tesseract is pretty much moot now. Though, I would like to still work on refining my quirk. For my physical strength I needed to be stronger even for my quirk, which had very little to do with my own muscles. It makes sense that for-"

"Kid, kid! Chill out, okay?" All Might interrupted. Izuku blushed and muttered out a sorry. "I have to say Young Midoriya, if you've already done all of this you are a lot farther along than I had thought! Now, how about you show me what you've got?"

With a determined nod Izuku followed the older man to the nearest trash pile.

Nearly an hour later Izuku fell onto the sand, gasping. Standing above him, laughing, was his hero. They had spent their time gauging Izuku's abilities, and even after 20 minutes All Might could tell that the green haired youth had put a lot of effort to get where he was.

"Wow kid, you are a lot farther than I thought you were. You're well on your way to receiving One for All for yourself!"

"Really?" Izuku responded, too tired to do more than glance from his place on the sand. All Might nodded.

"Yup. Here I thought that we would need the entire 10 months before the exam, but if you follow my All American Dream Plan, then you'll be sure to be finished well before that!"

"All American… Dream Plan?" came the wheezed response, Izuku raising himself shakily to his knees.

"It's the plan that I used in my youth, back when I did my stint in America. Don't worry, I've modified it for someone of your body type and weight… I guess I'll have to edit it again, now that I see how far along you are. Fear not!" As Izuku finally reached his feet a large hand placed itself on his shoulder. Looking up into the face of All Might's Hero form, he felt tears come once again to his eyes. With the sunset behind him, he looked like something out of a dream.

" **SO YOUNG MIDORIYA, I ASK YOU ONE FINAL TIME: ARE YOU READY TO BECOME MY SUCCESSOR? ARE YOU READY TO BE A HERO?** "

Izuku grinned. This wasn't a dream… this was his life.

"I am!"

This was the story of how he, Izuku Midoriya, became the world's greatest hero.

* * *

 **There it is! Like I said, short chapter. This marks the end of the intro stuff though! The next chapter should have some more meat to it, and hopefully some moments that you guys really like! Feel free to leave a review if you want, I love hearing your thoughts on my writing!**

 **Until next time, Glitch out!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone! Back with a brand new chapter of The Nexus Hero! I am a little uncertain of this one, but I hop you all enjoy it as the individual scenes were really fun to write!**

 **Anyways, standard disclaimer applies, and I hope you all like what you read!**

 **Chapter 4**

The All American Dream Plan was far from difficult. It wasn't hard, it wasn't painful. It wasn't the worst thing to ever happen to Izuku's body. It didn't leave him tired and sore every day, it didn't push him to every possible limit. Or at least, that was what the green haired boy thought every day as he fell asleep. He had to, or the crushing weight of the program would wreck him.

Almost every day he was up early, running to Dagobah Beach. He would work out there, dragging equipment and clearing trash. On his rest days he would stick to the little trash, things that could just be put in garbage bags. After that he was off to school, keeping up with the excessive amount of homework he was given by unsympathetic teachers. They didn't know what he was doing, and as the Izuku strained to stay awake in class he found himself glad that they didn't. Even Kacchan was leaving him alone for the most part. In fact, besides a loud confrontation where he declared he hadn't needed Izuku's help that day, he hadn't spoken to him at all. Not that Izuku would have time to talk even if Bakugo had tried. Right after school he was running for either his personal quirk training or an afternoon with All Might at the beach. It was exhausting work, but every day Izuku could feel it getting easier and easier. His muscles grew more defined, his strength increased, and he was much quicker. While he would never be "ripped", he could definitely appreciate the lean look he now had.

Overall the training was passing quickly, with only one major snag. Two months into the program, Izuku had woken one morning with no energy. He had been fitting more and more workouts into the times he had off, which in turn left his body no time to rest between workouts.

"Seriously kid?" All Might had said one day with a raised brow as he watched Izuku struggle to push a simple tire down the beach. "You can't push yourself past what's healthy."

Beyond that Izuku found himself improving drastically. It was an excruciating process some days, but it was all worth it to Izuku.

This was his origin story.

* * *

All Might was impressed, that much was sure. He hadn't realized it at the time, but choosing Midoriya was one of his most insightful choices yet! The young man was truly a thing to behold. Izuku trained without complaint, with a passion that even he hadn't had as a kid. All Might supressed a shiver as he opened the door of his car. The chilly morning air was nice, but he was hardly dressed for it today. He hadn't been to the beach as of late, trying to give Midoriya some variability in his training grounds. He was hoping to catch the boy this morning, as Izuku often came here around this time.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH" A yell broke through the serene quiet of the morning. All Might slammed the door and began running, reaching for the power of One for All as he did. That yell was obviously Midoriya, and if-

All thoughts of fighting sped from his mind as he took in the sight before him as he rounded the last corner. There, standing on a pile of trash, was none other than his successor to be. Midoriya was indeed screaming, oddly enough missing his shirt, but his yells were obviously that of victory as he yelled to the heavens with that green energy sparking off him as he did. He was covered in sweat and grime, but never had the hero seen the boy in a more positive light. He watched as Izuku relaxed before leaning forward and falling, flickering in midair and reappearing softly on the sand not far from the tower one which he had once stood. Chuckling, All Might approached.

"Well kid, call me impressed. You did it… more than I even expected," he noted, looking in either direction he could see no hint of trash along the entire beach. It was beautiful, restored to the state it had once been. "And it only took you 8 and a half months!" Izuku smiled tiredly as he stood up. It was a Saturday, so he was in no rush.

"T-thanks All Might." He said, rubbing the back of his head. He turned his head and smiled as he turned and looked at the job he had done. All Might chuckled and ruffled his hair. They had gotten fairly close these past few months, they were at the point where Izuku would only _sometimes_ stutter when talking to the pro. Toshinori took a deep breath before letting the power of his quirk flow through him. With his now stronger body it was simple to turn the younger boy towards him.

" **YOUNG MIDORIYA, I AM UNBELIEVABLY IMPRESSED WITH YOUR WORK. PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT YOURSELF NOW. YOU STARTED THIS JOURNEY AS A CHILD, TRYING TO FILL SHOES LARGER THAN YOUR OWN. BUT NOW? NOW YOU ARE A YOUNG MAN, IZUKU, A HERO IN TRAINING. I KNEW I HAD CHOSEN RIGHT ALL THOSE MONTHS AGO, AND YOU HAVE ONCE AGAIN REASSURED ME THAT I WAS NOT MISTAKEN. YOU, IZUKU MIDORIYA, ARE READY."**

"Wait… do you mean?" Izuku stared wide eyed at his mentor, a smile beginning to break out. All Might nodded.

" **YES I DO. YOU ARE READY FOR MY POWER. MY QUIRK. ONE FOR ALL. YOU WILL BE THE NEXT PILLAR OF JUSTICE, THE SYMBOL OF PEACE. TAKE THE WEEK OFF OKAY? I WILL SET UP A SAFE PLACE TO PRACTICE AND ON NEXT SATURDAY WE WILL TRANSFER THE POWER, OKAY?"**

Izuku nodded vigorously, and All Might caught what sounded like a thank you in the stuttered mess that left his lips. With a sigh he deflated into his true form and put his hand on the curly haired stutterer to shut him up.

"All right kid, just take it easy okay? I'll text you about Saturday, alright?"

"Okay!" Izuku said, excitement more than obvious in his tone. All Might couldn't help the grin that was spreading to his own face and shook his head, going back to his car. As he walked away he heard the sounds of celebration from behind him, and from the corner of his eye he could see the tell-tale green sparks that signified the use of the boy's quirk. He quickly made his way out of the chilly air, and it wasn't until he was driving away that he a frown finally found its way onto his face.

 _Guess I've got to find a place for training him in One for All now…_

* * *

Izuku sat in class, practically bouncing as the clock ticked away slowly. He could see multiple people glaring at him in annoyance, but he couldn't really bring himself to care. It was Thursday, only two days until he would see All Might again. Two days until he would receive a gift more wondrous than he had ever hoped. But before he could do that…

"Alright class, I hope you have all been paying attention. Tomorrow is the last day you have to hand in the Quirk of the Past assignment. Hopefully all you have left is to write your conclusions, so you should be able to finish it in time. As of now only Midoriya has handed it in, so the rest of you better hurry up."

Izuku glanced at the clock. He had finished that assignment a week ago. Aaaaand from the look of the students he could tell none of them appreciated that fact.

"Stupid Midoriya."

"What the hell, how did HE of all people finish."

"Does his family even have a history of quirks?"

"I bet he just lied about everything."

Sighing, Izuku stared forwards. This was common. The other students really didn't enjoy his success, no matter what he was succeeding at. And being singled out by the teacher usually meant one thing in particular.

RIIIIIIING!

"Oof!" Izuku gasped as the breath was forced out of his lungs forcefully, his back hitting a wall as he slid to the ground. Yup, just what he thought. He had been forced to talk to the teacher about his assignment right after class, which meant that by the time he had left the school the other students had been quite prepared for him. They had grabbed him before he could get away and here they were, behind the school taking turns wailing away at him. He didn't have training or anything, but he had been asked by his mom to go pick up some groceries.

"Take this you useless idiot!" Came the cry from somewhere, right before a foot impacted his shin. It was moments like these that made him regret not just coming out in the open with his quirk. This didn't happen very often anymore, but once every couple of months the other students got frustrated.

"This moron can't even fight back!"

"What a loser!"

Izuku closed his fist as a spark of green originated in his palm. He wasn't that loser anymore, he wasn't useless. He had faced a villain, he had seen what it was to be strong. In fact, he noticed that he barely felt most of the punches and kicks. He knew that he was stronger now, and that with the exception of Bakugo he was probably the strongest kid at the school. He had trained mercilessly these months (and yet Bakugo's natural ability to fight was just too much) and he was tired of _still_ being treated like this.

"B-b-back off." He said quietly. The group stopped for a moment as he spoke, surprisingly hearing him despite the volume at which he spoke. The two that were leading it looked down at him as he got to his feet. Mustering all his courage he began walking, his steps taking him past the ones that had initially pushed him against the wall.

"What did you say nerd?" They seemed shocked at his response, the usually bitterness in their voices kept at a minimum. Izuku took a deep breath and continued walking. He just had to get out of sight, and then he would be long gone.

"I'm… I'm going. I have somewhere I need to go. I won't be your p-p-punching bag anymore. I'm b-better than that." When asked later, Izuku would admit that he probably shouldn't have said that last part. He had almost made it, he had a few more steps until he was out of sight, when the last word left his lips. And yet, due to the outraged shout that came from the kids behind him, he knew that his plan to use his quirk to escape was finished. Before they could catch him again he bolted, his new physique allowing him to actually stay ahead of even the more athletic bullies.

 _Thank goodness Kacchan isn't here right now._ Izuku sprinted towards one of the more dense residential zones, intent on losing this pursuers in the winding streets and back alleys. He didn't pay much attention to the time, but he would guess that it took well over a half an hour to shake the most dedicated bullies. By the time the chase ended he sat down panting on the ground near the entrance to an alley. Somehow he had managed to make his way into the market district. He let himself catch his breath, pulling a water bottle from his bag and downing in. a few minutes later he felt his strength return to him.

"Well," he said to himself as he stood up, glancing around to double check that the bullies were gone, "I guess now is as good a time as anytime else to go get those groceries."

Shrugging his backpack onto his shoulder he turned towards the first shop.

"Oof" the breath was let loose as he fell backwards, his hand rubbing his head where it had collided with something. Or someone.

"Ow…" A voice echoed his pain. His eyes widened. He looked up. On the ground not a foot away from him was a girl about his age, her chocolate brown eyes looking upwards as she pushed aside her equally brown hair, her forehead red where it had collided with his own. Izuku's breath hitched.

 _O-o-of course. I r-ran into a-a-a girl. A v-v-v-very p-pretty girl._

His face lit up red as he felt the blush on his cheeks, a condition that was only worsened as she turned to look at him with a rueful smile.

"Oh, hey! Jeez, sorry about that! I can be a little clumsy sometimes! Are you okay?" her voice filled his ears, and he could swear his heart stopped.

"O-o-h yeah! I'm f-f-fine, haha!" He said, jumping to his feet and awkwardly standing there. Panic filled him for a moment before he quickly stuck his hand out to help her up. It was only fair, as he had been the one to knock her down. Still, as she grasped his hand he couldn't help but blush and look away. This was more positive contact with another person (besides All Might and his mother) than he'd had in years! With a slight pull she was on her feet. Before she could say anything though an older male voice called out.

"Ochako! Are you coming?" The girl, Ochako, turned and looked down the street, her hand leaving his (his eyes widened as he realized that he hadn't let go right away!) as she called back.

"Coming Daddy! Sorry, We're looking at apartments for me for school, so I gotta go! Maybe I'll see you around!" And with that she was gone, mixing into the crowd. Izuku blinked. Then again.

"Did I just have a conversation with a girl?!" He whispered (ignoring the fact he had said almost nothing during this "conversation"). Dazed, he turned and walked into the store. Well, the door of the store.

"Ugh," This was going to be a long afternoon.

* * *

It took some time, but a couple hours later he had collected all the various groceries from the stores in the area. It took much longer than he had hoped, as he wasn't very familiar with the stores in this area. The place he usually went for groceries had been destroyed by the sludge villain all those months ago, and they had yet to reopen fully. Besides, he honestly didn't do a lot of shopping, letting his mom get the food while he often cooked it.

He sighed as he looked up. It was a lot darker out than he had hoped. He supposed All Might _did_ say to take it easy. Still, he had hoped to get a small workout in…

Giving it up he began the trek home, mind in the clouds as he walked.

"I wonder what it is going to be like to receive that power this weekend? Will it merge with my current power or will it be different? How will I access it? The UA entrance exam is in about a month and a half. That gives me roughly 45 days to master a quirk that is publicly known as the number 1 quirk in the world. Then again, I just need to be able to pass the test. Mastering One for All is going to take time, I just need to not explode when receiving it. _Will_ I explode?"

As usual, his muttering filled the air, eventually just devolving into a stream of sound. This continued for some time, his muted voice filling the air, until his foot caught on the edge of a crack in the sidewalk, and gravity took over.

"Crap!" he shouted as he fell, followed by a wince as his groceries flew across the walk. Grumbling at his own clumsiness, Izuku began gathering his stuff from the ground, sadly noting that the eggs he had bought were now mostly cracked and leaking. Sighing, he looked around for the last item, a small melon. Seeing it over by the entrance to an alley, he reached out to grab it.

Only as he did, something happened that would change his life forever more.

A soft thump sounded across the alleyway as a small figure ran headfirst into Izuku, her obviously young and female voice crying out as she fell backwards. Blinking, Izuku looked down at the slight figure. She had been running at full speed, and yet he had barely felt a thing when she had hit him, such was her lack of weight. Sniffles were the next thing that he heard, small sobs coming from the girl who had yet to get up.

"Hey," Izuku intoned softly, dropping lightly to his knees beside her, "Are you okay?" His hand reached down and gently touched the girl's shoulder. Her reaction surprised him as she finally acknowledged his presence. Upon his contact she leapt back, scrambling away from him. Her startling red eyes contrasting her white hair as she stared at him with undisguised horror. On the right of her head a single horn poked through the dirty, matted hair, a soft glow emanating from it. After the initial glance she had dropped her gaze to the ground, shaking with barely contained terror. Startled at her lack of response, Izuku began moving forward to comfort her.

"There you are!" A man's voice called out. Izuku glanced up with relief as a figure called out. A man was walking down the alley way towards them, a smile on his face. Or rather, a smile in his eyes, as his actual mouth was covered by a strange… beak like mask. He shrugged internally, some people were self-conscious about physical quirks, so strange clothing like that wasn't entirely out of place. The rest of him seemed pretty average, brown hair, gold eyes, a coat on with an odd pair of white gloves. His gaze was focused on the little girl kneeling next to the green haired boy.

"Oh, h-hi there! Are you looking for her? Is she your daughter?" Izuku asked, gesturing to the little girl. His smile faltered as the young girl, previously frozen in spot, lunged for him, slipping behind him and using him as a shield. Shocked, Izuku stood and looked towards the man in confusion. The man seemed to shrug, and Izuku imagined a sheepish smile in place.

"Sorry bout this. Ya, she's my kid. She's quite upset though, one of her pets died earlier and when we told her she tried to run away. You know how kids are, she thought maybe it would help or something. C'mon Eri, we've got to get going now, otherwise everyone else will be worried." As he finished the man stopped walking forwards, and gestured for her to come. She, however, took no notice and instead hid even further behind Izuku. Izuku frowned and turned, lowering himself to her level once again.

"Hey, Eri right? My name is Izuku Midoriya. C'mon, let's go talk with your dad and get this all fixed up, okay? I promise that you're going to be okay." At that the little girl, Eri, finally looked up. Her eyes met his, and Izuku could practically see the various emotions swirling through her mind. Fear, sadness, despair. In that moment her eyes seemed similar to another pair he had once looked at every morning in the mirror for years on end, devoid of laughter and light.

"You promise?" her tiny voice came, whispered so softly for a moment Izuku didn't think she had spoken at all. She stared at him waiting for a response, and Izuku watched the tears welling in her eyes. She seemed so nervous, so small, fragile, and scared. Izuku nodded as the words caught in his throat, his thoughts going back to one of his many lessons with his mentor.

 _The smile? Well kid, I smile so that others feel like they can too. I smile to show them without a doubt that I am there to save them, that they can count on me. That even though they are terrified, everything is going to be alright. **That's** the reason I smile._

Taking All Might's words to heart, Izuku smiled down at Eri.

"I promise, you will be okay. I'll make sure of it." Out of the corner of his eye he could see the father standing, obviously annoyed with the time this was taking. Shooting him an apologetic look, he turned back to Eri and gave her a quick hug, ignoring the way she flinched as he did. For a moment she stood still, before he heard another small sob come from her before she fell into him. Feeling her relax a little he smiled and let loose a sigh of relief, hoping she had calmed down a bit.

"C'mon now," he said as he started to end the contact, "let's go see your dad okay?" Before he could pull away though, Eri leaned forward and whispered something in his ear.

"He isn't my dad."

Izuku froze. A million thoughts raced through his mind as he leaned back, taking in the image of Eri with a finer eye for detail. Her dress, if you could call the rags that adorned her that, were ripped and dirty. Her arms had bandages all around them, her skin was pale and she looked both starving and exhausted. All of a sudden the fear, the horror, took on an entirely different meaning, and as Izuku turned to face the man (who was now staring at him with a raised brow) he felt panic rising in his chest.

 _This is a kidnapping… or more likely a retrieval. It looks like Eri is pretty badly hurt already, so it wouldn't be crazy to think that they already had a hold of her. Also, he seems very familiar with her, and vice versa. What should I do?! I have no idea what his quirk is, all I know is that he might have a quirk related to his mouth. That's not enough information to fight him with, for all I know he could kill me without blinking an eye. What do I do? I need to stall._

"S-s-so, do you guys live nearby? I could help walk her home if you want."

"Oh no, I wouldn't want to be a _bother_." The man's eyes narrowed as he stared at Eri, and Izuku could feel his irritation rising. He took a step forward, and reached out a hand, as if to grab at the girl. As Eri flinched beside him, Izuku felt a dread feeling seep into his spine and his mind went into overdrive.

 _It's in his hands! Whatever his quirk is, he must be able to activate it through touch, otherwise Eri wouldn't have flinched so much at his hand moving closer. Crap, crap, crap! This won't work, can't work! If all he needs to do is touch us then I don't know if it's safe to touch him! He's glancing around a lot, probably looking out for heroes or cops, which means he's getting impatient. If I don't do something soon, he'll take Eri or kill me first, then take her. Oh man, what would a hero do in this situation? What would All Might do?_

All Might! Izuku's eyes widened as he looked down at his hands. All Might told him he would spending the week at UA, and that if he needed him he could call the school! If he could get there, then All Might (not to mention all the other pro heroes there), could help! Only…

 _UA is a long ways away though. I don't know if I can flicker that far, let alone with another person with me. But if I don't… I'll have to try, and if I can't maybe I can aim for a hospital. There's no way I am going to be standing after this. It needs to be a surprise though, I can't let him touch us!_

"Hey kid, you listening?" Izuku looked back towards the man, who was now openly frowning (or at least glaring), "I said that we need to go. If we're late then I'm going to be _upset_." Eri, who until this moment had been still as a statue, flinched at the final word, before slowly moving towards the man.

 _It's now or never!_ Izuku thought, and without another moment spared grabbed Eri by the arm, stopping her from moving forwards. He tried to smile as fearlessly as he could, but internally he screamed.

 _I hope this works._

Green energy began sparking off his skin as he pulled Eri behind him, facing the now obviously angered man. Making sure Eri's arm was still grasped in his hand, he crouched slightly. He could practically hear his own heartbeat as his terror grew. The man quirked an eyebrow before snarling.

"Drop her kid, I don't appreciate it when people mess around with my business."

"A-a-and I don't a-appreciate it when people l-lie." Izuku replied, trying to sound as intimidating as possible, and cursing his stutter as he did. He just needed time, he needed to charge as much energy as he could otherwise they would never make it.

"So she told you? I was wondering what tipped you off. I was certain my acting had gotten much better. Oh well. You can't possibly think you can win this fight."

Izuku frowned as the man's entire persona seemed to shift. His body didn't change, but now instead of a relieved father before him, a dangerous predator was present instead. The way he talked, stood, Izuku was pretty sure he was even breathing differently! Izuku felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand straight up, and he was fairly positive it had nothing to do with his quirk. Coughing, he felt his nexus straining as Tesseract continued to gather energy. The man took a step forward. Izuku spun and pulled Eri into a hug, gripping her tightly.

 _I hope this is enough!_

"I promise Eri, I will protect you." For the first time in that conversation, no waver was present in his voice, and as Eri looked up at him in shock he was pleased to see just a tiny glimmer of hope sparkle in her eyes. The man's mocking laugh came from behind him, too close for comfort, and shocked him back into reality.

"Don't make promises you can't keep. Now fight or die. The result is the same either way." Izuku turned and felt the blood rush from his face as he stared directly up into the golden eyes of the man. A now familiar tugging came from inside him, much stronger than any time before. The man took a white glove off one of his hands Izuku snarled, letting the pure power of Tesseract fill him.

"I was never going to fight. And you will never touch her again." The man's eyes widened as he realized his mistake, but before he could grab the pair they disappeared into thin air with a small burst of emerald energy, leaving but a few sparks lingering in the air. The man stood in shock for a second before a rage unlike any before filled him.

"AAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH!" He screamed, slamming his fist into the wall and watching as it deconstructed itself. Slowly, his breathing calmed, and he slowly wiped his hand clean and put his glove back on.

As he walked away, Kai Chisaki snarled under his mask. He would find Eri again, and when he did, that green haired hero wannabe would be **_cleansed_**.

* * *

All was quiet that afternoon at UA. The sun was still barely in the sky, the birds were chirping away, and a crack of energy filled the air.

Wait… what?

Indeed, near the entrance to the main building, the only thing Izuku had ever seen in person before, a flash of emerald energy lit up the air as two figures fell to the ground. The smaller one standing first.

This… this was it. She was… free? Free from pain, from all the needles and knives? Free from the bird people? Free?

Eri felt more tears well up in her eyes, but for some reason these didn't see, like the tears she usually cried. Normally tears happened when she was lonely or hurt, but she wasn't either of those now. She was free. FREE!

Letting the tears of joy run down her face, Eri turned back to the one that had saved her. When she had run into him she had been so scared, terrified he would turn her over to the bird people again. But he had been nice, and when he had hugged her… she had never felt so safe before. She hadn't realized that people could touch without hurting, but he had not only made her feel good, but saved her with a hug. The bird people often talked about heroes, about how they were a-a-a sickness or something terrible. She shook her head. He wasn't bad, he saved her, and made her feel safe. He was her hero.

Her hero.

A wet cough drew her attention as the older boy began to move. Eye's wide, Eri ran over to him. She stopped in shock, however, when he proceeded to scream in pain before coughing, a red liquid flowing from his mouth as he did. Turning so he was on his back she saw tracks of red flowing down his cheeks, red like the stuff from his mouth. As the smell hit her, Eri felt tears of a different kind come to her eyes. She knew this smell. Blood.

Frantically she kneeled beside him, shaking his arm.

"No! No no! Please be alright, please! You saved me, you saved me! Please, please get up…" She called out, tears of fear flowing freely as she tried to shake the boy awake. He gasped and opened his unfocused eyes, struggling for a moment before looking at her.

"We made it." Came his dazed words. Eri nodded quickly and leaned forwards, hugging him. He had made her feel better with a hug, so maybe she could make him feel better too?

"You saved me." She muttered into his shirt, squeezing as hard as she could. Izuku let his head fall back to the ground as she did. She wasn't doing much damage, but it was stinging quite a bit. He was sore to the point he could barely feel though, so he didn't say anything. His head though, that he could feel. Every sound was too loud, sending waves of fresh pain directly into his brain. He tried to move, get up, anything, and gasped as his body violently protested with a sharp and serious stab of pain the likes of which he hadn't felt in a long time. His breath was loosed sharply, and the black on the edge of his vision began creeping in on his sight. Dimly he was aware of Eri calling his name in fear, but nothing he did could stop the wave of darkness that overcame him, pulling him into unconsciousness. The last thing he saw before slipping away was a flash of bright light, Eri sobbing, and an unknown voice calling out for help.

* * *

 **Soooo, cliffhanger! Who found him? What comes next? In advance I apologize if anyone thought that the Eri scene wasn't original enough. I wanted to stay true to how I thought Izuku would react, especially with his quirk Tesseract. Next chapter we move forward! What will happen to Izuku and Eri now? What does the future have in store? I suppose you'll just have to wait until next chapter to see! Until then, Glitch out!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone! Glitch here with a new chapter! I have been reading the manga lately, and FINALLY got around to watching the Two Heroes movie. All I have to say is that My Hero Academia has yet to stop surprising me, XD.**

 **Anyways, thanks for all your support and reviews! I should be updating FOTD next, so it may be a little while before the next chapter of Nexus Hero. I apologize, but with finals and the rest of my life here at UNI I'm pretty stretched. Now, onto the chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I wish I owned this series, I really do, but I do not.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

"Sit here and wait."

"Just wait, everything will be okay."

"Stop crying kid, it'll be alright."

"I'm sorry child, but you have to wait."

Wait. Wait wait wait! How was she supposed to wait?! Eri felt more tears beginning to slide down her cheeks. Sobs threatened to overtake her as she curled into herself as much as she possibly could, attempting to hide herself in plain sight. Her hero, Izuku, had saved her. But now she couldn't see him anymore, she couldn't see him and everyone just kept saying to wait! They didn't understand, she needed to see him, she needed to be sure he was okay!

As Eri began sobbing on her bench, as close to the door as the adults would let her, a figure clad in black with an oddly unique scarf around his neck sighed. Aizawa HAD been having a rather standard night. Enjoying some last minute preparations, readying his syllabus for the upcoming year, and once again being ignored as he complained about how illogical the entrance exam was this year. Robots? Once again potential students with strength quirks and other similar abilities would stand out, while others fell to the back. Oh well… he would still be able to expel the ones that didn't belong there.

The meeting he had been attending had just finished, and he was on his way out of the main building and ready to head home when a flash of light drew his attention. Shrugging he had started moving in that direction, but when the light was followed by an intense scream a few moments later he broke into a sprint. He called out for Recovery Girl's help into his mic (thank goodness he hadn't changed out of his uniform yet) and ran around a corner into the entrance area of the school. There! Crouched on the ground was a small form, leaning over a larger, immobile form. On her forehead there was some sort of horn, light shining from it like a miniature beacon. Calling out for help once more he rushed forwards to help the two – they were children, he could now see. His breath caught, however, as he reached them. The boy… while he seemed to be lacking any real physical injuries there was no way he could be bleeding that much without major internal damage. And with the amount of blood on the ground, staining the grass and the white rags the little girl was wearing indiscriminately, he knew it was too late. He grit his teeth as he kneeled on the ground, eyes squinting at the light shining off the young girl.

"I'm sorry. He's almost gone." His voice had been dead. He knew that this was going to crush the girl, but he could see the last rasping breaths coming from the boy, the way the blood flow was slowing. He was nearly gone. He was dying. She needed to say goodbye. Shaking her head, the small girl refused to listen to his words, and before he knew what happening she lunged forward and touched her small, blood stained hands to the boy's skin.

"NOOO! PLEASE IZU! PLEASE, DON'T GO!"

With no lack of surprise Aizawa watched as the glow in her horn flared brightly, nearly blinding him as he activated his quirk to stop the brightness. As it faded, a sound called his attention. The small girl was nearly passed out now, but it was the other child that was his main concern. The now _breathing_ boy. Eyes wide he looked down at the exhausted child.

 _Now that is an interesting quirk_.

And yet, he noted, a dangerous one. It may have somewhat healed the boy, but the grass around her bare legs was gone now, only dirt was present where she knees touched the ground. A raspy cough brought his attention back to the kid, and he leaned down and scooped him into his arms, dragging the incredibly light girl into his arms as well. While she had saved him from death she hadn't nearly healed him to the point of safety. He needed to see Recovery Girl NOW.

That lead them to where he was currently. Staring at a small weeping child, not to mention preventing her from entering the room where Recovery Girl was working, and playing babysitter. He was the only one that could cancel her unknown quirk, which had activated 6 times in the last hour. He wasn't completely alone though. He, alongside Present Mic, Midnight, and Recovery Girl herself, had tried to explain to her that she needed to be patient. Unfortunately, the 5 (perhaps 6) year old girl hadn't listened to them at all, resigning herself to sitting as close as she could to the door and saying naught.

A creak was heard as the doors to the infirmary were opened. The two of occupants of the room stared at Recovery Girl as she entered, one with tears in her eyes and the other with a small amount of concern, his glance shifting to the near hysterical girl. The matronly women sighed and gestured to the room behind her.

"He's going to be just fine."

Immediately, the child bolted past the two, running into the dimly lit room beyond. By the time the adults had entered she was hugging the green haired boy and crying, muttering what sounded like "Izu," over and over again. Aizawa sighed as the kid slowly faded into unconsciousness, her exhaustion finally catching up with her. He glanced over at Recovery Girl, who nodded.

"It's alright. From what I could tell about her quirk, she needs to be distressed for it to activate. Nightmares are of course a possible issue, but I put the boy in one of our 'special' beds." The beds in question had been designed a few years ago to help people, using a power similar to Aizawa's to limit quirks during operations or recovery times when the quirks would be harmful. The technology was new though, and had to be applied to a target for at least an hour to become effective, so there was little application of it outside these beds for now.

"Hey! What's going on in here?" Aizawa rolled his eyes. Of course, _now_ he shows up. Typical. Alongside the shrunken hero stood the principal of the prestigious academy, Principal Nezu.

"Nothing All Might, we just had a little bit of a scare, but everything has been taken care of." The principal nodded.

"Yes, Present Mic has informed me of the situation. Now, Toshinori, you were saying about your successor?" Aizawa resisted another eye roll, settling for a huff. That had been quite the bombshell, one that only a select few had gotten to hear about. In fact, his own knowledge of "One for All" had been quite accidental, simply overhearing the two talking about it in a neighboring room. Honestly, you'd think they would be more careful. Now that he knew though, All Might took every liberty to brag about his chosen one. It was getting quite annoying.

"Oh ya! I'm going to be bringing him by this Saturday to do the transfer, so we wanted you to be there Aizawa, in case anything goes wrong." Aizawa nodded. That was only logical. The popular hero continued talking as he began moving towards the lump he saw in one of the beds. "I promise, you'll be impressed with Midoriya. Now, are these the kids that you've been… Midoriya?!"

"What now All Might?" Aizawa all but groaned. "We all remember your 'successor's' name. Can we focus on the issue that's at hand now?" All Might shook his head.

"No Aizawa, you misunderstand me. What I am saying is THAT," he gestured to the unconscious green-haired boy on the bed, "Is the boy I have been telling you about. Izuku Midoriya." For a moment Aizawa felt some surprise, but he would be damned before he let the number one hero know that.

"I see. Explain."

This was going to be a long night.

* * *

Izuku woke slowly. His chest felt like something was laying on it and his body ached. If he were to describe the feeling he would have to say 'hit by a bus,' would be a good description. What happened to him? He let out a moan as he attempted to move. All he remembered was going shopping…

Eyes opening wide he shot into a sitting position, back straight as the memories of the night flowed into his head. Immediately a startled yelp was heard, about a second before he let loose a pained shout, falling back into the bed he was laying in. Apparently, he was hurt a bit more than he had thought. Looking around he took stock of the room. The bed seemed similar to a hospital bed, but the room seemed more like a nurse's office than a hospital room. Glancing at the clock he winced, if the sunlight outside the window was any indicator then it was nearly noon, which means not only was he missing school, but he hadn't gone home at all last night. His mom was probably in a panic. He let his gaze fall downwards, smiling as he caught a glimpse of a U.A. sign on the wall.

 _I made it. Thank goodness for that at least._

After that thought Izuku was distracted as a face popped into his field of vision from the side of the bed, rubbing a red forehead. He let out a sigh of relief as he saw her.

"Owww… Why did you do that Izu?" the small girl moaned, frowning slightly. The frown only lasted for a second though, and as her eyes widened Eri began to cry. Izuku felt panic rise as Eri lunged forward and hugged him, causing an unnoticed wince as she gripped his ribs.

"You're o-okay!" she sobbed out, "I-I didn't know if you would ever wake up! I was so scared, and all they said was wait!" Izuku blinked. He had guessed that Eri would be more open with him since he had rescued him, but to this degree? Her life must have been truly terrible if she was this attached to him already. Shaking his head, he smiled. He wanted to be a hero, right? Well this was where it started. Ignoring the pain he pulled her into as big of a hug he could manage.

"I'm sorry Eri, I didn't mean to make you worry. I'm alright now, and you're safe. That's all that matters. No need to worry anymore, alright?" She looked up at his face, his smile, and nodded. "Now let's see that pretty smile, okay? I know it's in there somewhere," he teased, poking at her until she slowly began smiling, a giggle escaping her mouth every couple seconds. He let up after a few seconds and leaned on the back of the bed. Eri looked at him for a moment before speaking up.

"You are going to be okay, right Izu?" she asked meekly. Izuku nodded. Seeing him injured must have been scary for her.

"I promise Eri, that won't happen again."

"You better believe it won't happen again." A third voice cut in, startling the two in the room. Izuku's head whipped to the door, and in his peripheral vision he saw Eri clam up, scurrying off the bed and staring at the door. She was now standing closer to him, using him as cover of sorts, he supposed.

Standing at the door was a man dressed in blacks and greys, a scarf around his neck alongside some yellow goggles. His appearance seemed familiar to the teenager, but he still couldn't place the name.

"Now, now, Aizawa, you can't be that hard on the kid."

"All Might!" Izuku shouted as the larger hero entered the room, though at the moment he technically was smaller than Aizawa.

"I can and I will Toshinori. That idiot," he said in a monotone voice, observing as Izuku went red and looked down at the insult, "nearly killed himself to get here. If it weren't for the girl's quirk he would be _dead_. What do you want me to say to him?"

"Alright, alright. I get it." All Might conceded. "He made a major mistake, but he just woke up."

"Maybe you can afford to be soft All Might, but he has to learn." He paused, looking over to the still red Izuku. "Well?"

Izuku looked up, startled, before frowning. Had he said dead? What were they talking about?

"I'm sorry All Might. I know what I did was risky, b-but I couldn't do anything else. Flickering with another person knocks me out. I n-needed to get as far away from him to protect Eri, but if it wasn't somewhere safe then she would have been s-stranded, basically a-alone. S-s-so I picked the only place that I knew would be safe, and have the p-p-proper equipment to help me, since I would b-be hurt." He stuttered out. He watched as the man with the scarf, Aizawa, just barely narrowed his eyes.

"Hurt? You're a fool. Have you ever tried to go that far before? What was it you called it? Flickering?" Izuku shook his head meekly. "I didn't think so. When you arrived you were so injured I'm frankly shocked you didn't die on the spot." Pausing for a second he went over to a clipboard.

"Multiple broken limbs, strained muscles, second degree burns alongside your arms and legs, excessive internal bleeding, and a massive concussion. And that was after she," He gestured to the still hiding Eri, "had used her quirk on you. Before that you were a breathing corpse. Without her you would have been dead before I got you anywhere near the infirmary. And without me to erase her quirk you may have died anyways. Understand?"

Izuku nodded numbly, mindlessly recognizing the man in front of him as Eraser Head, though the excitement of that was lost within the shock as he heard just how badly he had been injured. Even though the hero in front of him had never even raised his voice, every word spoken had carried a weight behind it that made him ashamed of his own weakness. He looked down to the small girl and seeing her glance up at him smiled, ignoring the fear and shame present after hearing what condition he had been in.

"I guess you were my hero too Eri." He muttered softly. The young girl didn't answer, simply burrowing her head into his side and wrapping her arms around him as best she could. His smile softened into something more sincere as she hugged him, an unfamiliar feeling of protectiveness surfacing within him.

Meanwhile, off to the side he could hear the adults talking, another pair of adults having entered if their voices where anything to go by.

"Well, what should we do?" All Might asked, looking to Principal Nezu and Recovery Girl. Both shook their heads softly.

"To be honest I'm not certain," Recovery Girl said, looking over at the two children, "We ran a DNA test on the younger one, Eri, while she was unconscious. There were no matches. She's a ghost Toshinori, as if she doesn't exist. She has no family, no one to turn to, and worst of all we can't hope to send her into any form of foster care."

"Indeed," Nezu spoke up, "If not because of her kidnapping, it would be unwise for us to release her with the quirk she has. Aizawa, you said that it healed the boy, but…" The pro nodded.

"Whatever it is it isn't a simple healing quirk. His injuries were gone, like they had never happened, but anything else that she had been touching, like the grass under her, was gone. Not burnt, not crushed on crinkled, just gone." He replied in his monotone way. All Might sighed.

"Then what are we going to do with her?"

Back with Izuku, Eri looked up at the green-haired boy.

"Izu… what's going to happen now?" Her red eyes were filled with concern, and a touch of fear. Izuku ignored his protesting muscles and reached down, pulling her back up onto the bed with him.

"What do you mean Eri?" He asked softly. She looked over to the adults speaking in the corner, before looking down at her lap.

"Where am I gunna go Izu? Are they going to take me away?" Tears began lightly falling from her eyes as she slowly shook her head.

"I don't want to go away again."

Izuku never knew why he did what he did next. A gut feeling? A sense of responsibility? In any case, he could always tell that it was when the child in front of him had uttered these words, and a single teardrop fell to her lap that he knew exactly what he had to do.

"I'll take care of her." His voice cut through the adult's conversation like a knife, the lack of stutter surprising the heroes that had heard him speak before. Turning they found the injured boy staring directly at them. Glancing at the other three briefly All Might made his way over to the hospital bed, sitting in a chair beside it.

"Are you sure Young Midoriya? That is an incredible responsibility, one that most people your age wouldn't want, nor be able to handle." Izuku nodded, looking down at the wide eyed girl who was staring right at him.

"I understand All Might, but I promised Eri I would protect her no matter what. I don't know what that bird mask guy has done to her, but I know that in saving her I changed her life. I know that it's a big responsibility, b-but I think I can handle it!" His voice dropped low, "It won't be easy, and I know that I'll need help, but I can't just abandon her. I will protect her, no matter what." Silence reigned as the adults before All Might's chuckle caught everyone's attention.

"Jeez kid, every time I think I've got you figured out you go ahead and raise the bar." He turned back to the other teachers. However, before he could say anything he was cut short by the voice of Principal Nezu.

"Midoriya, the man that Eri was running from was wearing a beak shaped mask?" Izuku's eyes widened as he looked down at the small mouse…bear…being. This was THE PRINCIPAL OF UA! Biting his tongue to prevent the overwhelming amounts of excitement from meeting such an amazing hero he nodded vigorously.

"Now now, stop that young man!" The elderly woman called out, "You're going to hurt yourself in your condition!"

"Now Midoriya, this may seem like a minor detail, but did this man also happen to be wearing a pair of gloves? White gloves to be precise." Again Izuku nodded, confusion tempering his excitement for a moment.

"Yes sir, but how…"

"I see. This is an unsettling development then." The rest of the adults looked to the principal in confusion.

"Well?" Aizawa drawled out. Gosh, he hated dramatics.

"Recently there have been rumors of a group of villains. Up to now they have been operating in the shadows, in fact very little actual evidence even points to their existence. Up until now the only tangible evidence we had were relays being sent through the underworld, always involving the number 8 and something vague reference to death. One detail among all of the criminals thought to be associated with this group though was that the leader of these villains was a man of great power. A man who despised filth, who wears a plague mask alongside white gloves to keep himself clean." At this Aizawa cut in.

"Overhaul. I've heard those rumours too."

"If this is the case, then both of the children here are in much more danger than we previously realized." After saying this the adults moved outside, their muted voices leaking through the door. Izuku rubbed Eri's head, frowning at dirty her matted white hair was. They were going to have to fix that soon, it would do no good to have her covered in filth any longer than necessary.

Izuku blinked, before shaking his head as he thought of the teachers discussion. Overhaul… this couldn't be good…

A creak signalled the return of the heroes as All Might once again approached the two in the bed. Eri squeaked and buried her face into Izuku's chest as he did, and All Might smiled. Only, this smile seemed to put a chill in Izuku's spine, as if he instinctually knew something bad was about to happen.

"Well kid, it's not the best situation, but I think we've come up with a plan! Now all we need is to get your mother on board!"

His eyes widened, fear filling him. His mother… who hadn't heard from him since the night before. Who he had yet to call… or text…

He was in so much trouble.

* * *

In the end, Izuku was let out of the infirmary later that day. After a tiring healing session with Recovery Girl (whom he recognized after she used her power) he was okay to leave, with some rather threatening warnings from the nurse which he took with a mumbled "yes ma'am". However, as the saying goes, it was out of the frying pan and into the fire.

"…"

"AND IF YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN JUST GO OFF AND GET HURT AGAIN AND AGAIN YOU ARE WRONG MISTER! OH IZUKUUUUU, I WAS SO WORRIED!" Tears were cascading down his mother's face as they stood in the lobby of the main building of UA. This had been going on for some time, switching from grounding him for 10 years to hugging him and being overjoyed he was alright.

Off to the side Aizawa watched the interaction with a raised brow. He hadn't been aware that a human could produce that many tears. Internally he sighed in relief. At Izuku's behest they hadn't elaborated on the exact injuries he had sustained, and in no way had they suggested he had been anywhere near death. While he had initially protested keeping that information from the guardian, he now assumed this was the sort of scene the boy had been trying to avoid. Before long though the woman had stopped her tirade and turned to him. He sighed as he wondered exactly why he had been chosen for this… rock paper scissors was hardly a logical way to decide.

"Hello Ma'am. You must be Mrs. Midoriya?" He asked. Behind the woman he could see the younger Midoriya catch his breath, and with a glance at the adults before moving off into one of the side rooms. He assumed Eri was hiding there, and with the reaction that Inko Midoriya had to her son he didn't blame her.

"Yes, yes, that would be me. Thank you so much for helping my son. I don't know what gets into him sometimes."

"He does seem to be a trouble maker," he replied, "I'm not sure how much you know about the situation, but I would like to catch you up to speed, Mrs. Midoriya," Inko nodded.

"It's Inko, please. No need for such formality for the man who saved my dear Izuku. I wasn't told much on the phone, only that Izuku was hurt for some reason and ended up here." Aizawa sighed. That was practically nothing, which of course meant he was saddled with the rest. Present Mic was going to be doing his paperwork for the next month after this.

"I apologize Mrs. Mid- Inko," he corrected as she opened her mouth to interrupt, "But there is a little more to it." As he explained he cursed the rest of the faculty for this. Mrs. Midoriya acted as one would expect, crying when she heard of the nature encounter, smiling when she heard how Izuku acted, and frowning as he mentioned the danger of the man they suspected he had crossed.

"As you can see Inko, this leads us to a big problem. We have a young girl who has little-to-no control over a powerful quirk that activates when she is panicked, and she is almost always panicked unless your son is in the same room as her. On top of that the both of them are probably potential targets for a vast network of villains that we have no way to track, no way to defend against, and is led by an extremely dangerous criminal with an unknown quirk."

"So what you're saying is that Izuku is in a lot of trouble here. My son always seems to act before thinking of what might happen to him. Ever since he was little he would always leap into action, even before he found out about his quirk." Inko replied, her voice wavering. Aizawa nodded. Now for the critical moment.

"He is. The boy may be heroic, but he isn't trained as a hero. I understand that he was planning on applying to UA?" Inko nodded.

"Yes, that has always been a dream for him."

"I have no doubt he will try his hardest Mrs. Midoriya," He reassured her. Internally he winced. He hated speaking to parents. Izuku seemed to be talented, but that was no assurance he would make it in. But getting Inko to agree to their request was more important than his own pessimistic views, or at least that was what Nezu said when threatening him with detention duty for an entire semester when they discussed the importance of this.

"With all of this, the faculty here at UA would like to make a request of you Mrs. Midoriya. We know that all of this is sudden, and we have already gotten the police's support in this matter, but we would like Izuku to move here." He paused as he let the full scope of his words sink in. "There have been discussions of converting to a boarding school for some time now, and we believe this would be a great first step. The dorm he would live in is being constructed as we speak. Here he and Eri would be safe from this Overhaul, and Izuku would get the opportunity to train with the best pros in the world. Whether or not he attends UA will still be up to him, but for now we can provide a safe place." For a moment after he finished the woman before him simply frowned and looked down at the ground in thought. After a minute Aizawa sighed, resigning himself to trying again.

"Mrs. Midoriya, this is-"

"I'll do it."

"Huh?" Aizawa raised a brow as the green haired mother raised her head, a look of teary determination in her eyes. She shook her head to clear her thoughts before continuing.

"I may not be happy about all of this, but I can see that it is for the best. I want to be able to visit on weekends though…" she let out a deep breath, "If this was just Izuku, I may not have agreed to this. But there's a little girl involved."

"Eri," Aizawa supplied, "As far as we can tell she is only about 5 or 6. Izuku promised her he would protect her, and as idiotic as he is I can tell that he will do everything to live up to that promise." Inko nodded.

"That sounds like my Izuku. I don't like any of this, but I realize that this is for the best."

"Thank you Mrs. Midoriya. This has gone much smoother than I had hoped. You've been very logical about all this. For a few weeks we will keep him here, and as soon as we feel it's safe we will arrange a guarded trip to your home for him to acquire anything he may want. Up until the beginning of the semester you can visit at any time. Thank you for your cooperation."

It was at that point that Izuku walked back into the room, Eri clutching his shirt from behind him as she shyly hid from the rest of the people.

"Thank you mom," Izuku said, smiling, "I know this is weird, but I promised her." Inko nodded at her son before moving over to him, slowly as to not spook Eri.

"I know Izuku, I know. Now you have to promise that you'll take care of yourself, you understand? You have to brush your teeth, make sure to change your sheets often, and I''ll be sure to bring your All Might pj's as soon as I can!" Izuku blushed red as the stoic Aizawa smirked at him as his mother said this.

"Mooom," he semi-hissed in embarrassment. He startled as Inko wrapped her arms around him, feeling Eri tense as she did, before she leaned back and held his shoulders at arm's length.

"I love you Izuku. I know you will always do what you feel is right. I don't want to say goodbye, but I will be back soon okay?"

"I know mom, I wish that I didn't have to move either…" Izuku trailed off, leaving an uncertain tone lingering.

"But…" Inko intoned, sensing her son's reluctance.

"But I am not sorry I did what I did. I know it was dangerous, but I helped Eri! Whatever the cost, that was worth it." He finished with a nod. Inko smiled tearfully before hugging him once more.

"I know, and I am so proud."

It took some time, but after many shed tears, the two Midoriya's separated. They had tried to introduce her to Eri, but they had barely gotten a squeak from her before she had hidden herself in Izuku's arms. Inko didn't mind, she knew that as far as Eri was concerned Izuku was the only safe thing in the world right now. Trusting others would be a process, one that she hoped to be a part of. It was obvious Eri was now a part of her son's life, which meant her life as well.

Inko left, heading home just as empty handed as she had arrived. This had not been what she had been expecting, but in a way she was okay with it. Izuku was growing up, and if this would help him be a hero, then she was alright. She would always regret the day they had said that Izuku was quirkless, how she reacted as if it was the end of the world. That wasn't what Izuku needed, it wasn't what she should have done. But she couldn't change that, all she could do was support him in all he was doing now, and try her hardest to help him become a hero.

* * *

"Alright, here's your new home. It was finished earlier today, and you're the only people living in it. Your room will be on the second floor. Stay out of the girls wing, but feel free to go everywhere else. Your room has a toilet, closet, bed, air conditioning, a fridge, and a balcony. Don't let her," a gesture to a wide eyed Eri, "fool around on the balcony. On the main floor you have the kitchen, the baths, a courtyard, and a living area. Don't break anything and you should be fine, got it?"

"Yes sir!" Izuku called out, Eri standing beside him with a grip on his shirt. Aizawa sighed at the pair before gesturing around him.

"Welcome to Heights Alliance then. If you have any problems the number for the office is in the kitchen. All the staff live on campus, and my own apartment is only a minute away, got it? Someone will answer. Is there anything else you need now?" Izuku shook his head, Eri shaking her head in a similar manner, though more subdued. "Good. Unless one of you are dying try not to bug the teachers too much. The kitchen is stocked, so stay fed. You can cook, right Midoriya."

"Yes Aizawa sir. I can."

"Make some dinner then. Tomorrow you need to be at Ground Beta at 9:00, we'll send someone to pick you up so be ready. We also got some clothes for both of you until you can get your own. Alright?" Two nods. He nodded back. It was good that Eri was beginning to respond to others, even if it was only nonverbal while looking away. With that he turned and left the two kids to their night. Tomorrow he would get to see why this Midoriya was so special to All Might.

"This better be worth it," he muttered to himself as he walked away, finally ready to get some sleep. The sun was already setting and he hadn't managed to even take a nap since the meeting the night before.

Back in the dorms Izuku stood looking around in wonder. His mother was not poor, but they were definitely not wealthy enough to afford something like this. And for this to have been built in a little under a day? Quirks truly were amazing. Looking down he saw Eri's face mirroring his own, filled with a wonder that up to this point he had never seen from her.

"Well Eri, it's just us now. Do you want to go get changed?"

"Changed?" Eri mimicked, tilting her head slightly in confusion.

"Ya, we are both sort of gross." He said, poking her slightly. He smiled as she relaxed a little bit before nodding as she gave him a hug.

"Okay Izu."

"And then I'll cook us something yummy." Izuku said. Eri's eyes lit up at that and she grabbed his hand.

"Food? Really? I've always wanted to try yummy food! The guard's food always smelled so good…" Her voice trailed off as her eyes grew distant, and Izuku quickly scooped her up in his arms, pulling her close to his chest as a few tears began to leak out of the young girl's eyes. Walking over to the couch he sat down on the couch and hugged the girl close as her tears developed into full blown crying. For the next half hour they stayed like that, until Eri's sobs slowly faded. Izuku rubbed her back slowly.

"Are you alright Eri?" He asked, feeling the little girl nod into his chest.

"M'sorry" she mumbled, only for Izuku to pick her up and begin walking towards the elevator that would lead to their room.

"It's okay Eri, I promise. I said I would protect you right? Well I guess that just means I'll protect you from sadness too! I'll keep you safe, just like All Might."

"Who's All Might?" Izuku looked down at the girl, shocked for a moment before shaking his head.

"Well, All Might is the greatest hero ever." He said seriously, "He's the fastest, strongest, and most heroic person ever. He has been my hero for as long as I can remember… Tomorrow I will introduce you to him, okay?"

"Izu's hero?" He nodded.

"He's my mentor, and one day I am going to be just like him!" Eri nodded seriously.

"Izu is going to be the best hero ever." She said as she nodded, drawing a laugh from Izuku.

"I still have a lot to learn Eri, but I'm going to work hard until I become a hero! Now, before we eat lets go get some clothes, alright?" With that he arrived at his room and pushed the door open. The dorm room was simple and bare, with nothing of his being in there. In the closet was a simple outfit for him, alongside some basic pajamas and some sort of UA track suit sitting alongside a swimsuit. In the dressers however…

"Wooow" Eri said as she stared into the drawers. Within each compartment laid a variety of clothes, many different shades of blue and purple and pink dotted the pile, alongside a bunch of other colors on the different drawers. Each looked to be just the right size for Eri, who was still staring at them in wonder.

"Are these… mine?" She asked quietly. Rather than answering Izuku walked over to a drawer marked pajamas and pulled out a simple yellow onesie.

"How about this one?" Eri nodded mutely, staring at the clothing in awe. Izuku chuckled before leading her to downstairs to the showers. He opened the girls shower and quickly showed Eri how to work the simple bath. Eri looked at the shower then back at Izuku, panic in her eyes.

"You aren't staying?" She asked, and Izuku cursed himself. How was this going to work? Wait!

Quickly he led them back upstairs and grabbed a few articles of clothing before leading them back to the showers.

"Here you go Eri. This is a swimsuit, that way we'll be able to clean up together okay? I'll be right in the stall next door. Do you think you know what you're doing well enough?" Eri nodded, appeased that Izuku would be nearby.

"Mmmhmm, I got to shower sometimes before and I know how to do it on my own now!" She proclaimed proudly. Izuku chuckled and led her to a stall, setting his stuff in the stall next to hers.

"Alright then, let's get clean okay?" Eri nodded and headed into hers as Izuku stepped into his own stall. Soon they were showered and dressed in their new pajamas. Eri was now sitting on the couch, captivated by a cartoon Izuku had out on. It seemed as though Lilo and Stitch was going to be a staple from then on to be a favorite if the sounds of laughter she was making were any indication. For the rest of the night they simply ate before heading to bed early. Izuku chuckled fondly as he recalled the drooling look Eri had as she smelled the Katsudon he had made. He had also learned that Eri had quite the sweet tooth, her newfound love of sugar was something that he was sure he'd have to watch out for. Stretching he fell back onto his bed, watching in enjoyment as Eri copied his motions and fell backwards as well. Within minutes she had curled up against his chest and was sound asleep. As he felt sleep starting to set in he thought back over the day. Living with Eri was… different. It was new, and honestly it made him happy that he could make her smile after all she had been through. He was glad he could take care of her. Pulling the blanket up to cover the two of them he settled down and let sleep take him. He would protect Eri no matter what, as he had promised.

So long as he survived whatever All Might and Aizawa had planned for him in the morning that is…

* * *

 **Thanks for reading guys! Can't wait until next chapter!**

 **Until then though, Glitch out!**


	6. Chapter 6

**First off, I apologize. I lied. Turns out I'm having a little bit of writers block for FOTD, so I proceeded to write the longest chapter fo Nexus Hero yet XD. Anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter, I had a lot of fun writing it. The pacing worries me a bit, but I want to get into the story fairly quickly, so that is that.**

 **The Keeper of Worlds: My goodness that is hilarious! Thank you so much XD !**

 **Anyways, standard disclaimers apply. Read and review! Thanks guys!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

Izuku yawned as his alarm went off, stretching and reaching for where he his alarm rested on his nightstand. However, as he swung his hand through the empty air his confusion grew. He had kept that alarm in the same place for years now…

Opening his eyes he squinted at the light seeped in from the blinds. Blinking, he looked around the room, momentarily shocked at the bare walls and lack of All Might… well, everything. He sighed as his mind caught up with his body and the memory of the last day returned.

 _That's right. It wasn't a dream. I don't live at home anymore._

A slight groan caught his attention, and a weight on his chest was shifted as Eri raised her head. She looked around for a moment, eyes bleary, before focussing on Izuku and yawning.

"Izu?" She muttered, letting loose another small yawn that Izuku couldn't help but find adorable, "Why're you up s'early?" Her slurred words were accompanied by her snuggling into his shirt a little. Izuku chuckled and looked over at the clock. 6:00 was pretty early, but his schedule was pretty set at this point. He was actually waking up later than usual, figuring that he shouldn't work out too much if he was going to be working at 9.

"I have to go work out. Do you want to come?" His question went unanswered as his charge fell asleep once more. He chuckled again and stood, grabbing some of the work-out clothes that were in the closet. After quickly changing he gathered Eri in a bundle of blankets and brought her to the couch in the living room. Laying her down he stretched, and walked outside. He didn't want to roam far, so he decided that running up and down the road that run by the house. It wasn't as scenic as his usual run, but he didn't want to leave Eri alone for too long. Maybe when she was more comfortable.

Stepping out of the door he began to jog up and down the path. He always made sure to keep the dorm in sight, and as he ran he noticed multiple sites where construction was already starting.

"I guess they aren't kidding about converting to a boarding school. I suppose it would only make sense, seeing as villains have access to public records, so they'll know who is attending anyways. This way the students won't have to worry about being approached by villains on the way to school! Though, that hasn't really been an issue in the past… I wonder if there has been any security leaks lately? That could explain why All Might was here, though he could have just been visiting. He's been in town for a while now though, and his agency is really far away." Izuku muttered as he walked by one of the sites. His run had ended on the far side, and the walk back was a perfect cool down before he got some breakfast.

Unbeknownst to him, a certain pair of tired eyes followed him from the window of the only other completed building on the block, the staff quarters. It was much larger than the students dorms, each teacher being given a fully stocked apartment rather than a simple room. It's not like UA had a shortage of money after all.

Aizawa watched as the green haired boy walked, obviously muttered to himself. An annoying habit, he decided, but it was to be expected. Toshinori had mentioned it once or twice (a day), but he hadn't expected it to be so excessive. The kid was smart, he'd give him that, but he needed to think quicker if he was going to make it as a hero. Removing himself from the window Aizawa groaned. It was too early to be getting up.

At the student dorms, Izuku sighed as he walked up to the door, creaking it open after unlocking it. With a glance to double check that Eri was still asleep he slid into the baths to have a quick rinse. There wasn't really a point to having a full shower, not if he was going to be training in a little bit here. As he showered he thought about the run. Overall it went smoothly, though his muscles were a little sore. He supposed that's what happened when…

Taking a deep breath he let the water flow over him, trying to calm the panic that immediately rose. This had been the first time he had really, truly considered what had happened to him. He had almost died. Died. That was hard to accept. He looked down at his hands, which were shaking slightly.

 _Wouldn't be the first time though_.

Shaking his head at the sudden negative thoughts he quickly rinsed off before heading to the kitchen to get started on breakfast. On the way there he paused, looking at Eri who was curled into a ball of blankets. Upon seeing her he smiled and a thought ran through his mind.

 _It was worth it. Even though I got hurt, it was worth it to see her safe._

Still smiling, Izuku made his way to the fridge and began cooking, pushing the thoughts of panic from his mind. Eggs, bacon, some fruits, all were taken out and he began his preparation. A half hour later a sound came from the living area. He looked over to watch Eri sit up and yawn before stretching.

"Izu?" She called out.

"Right over here Eri."

She turned around and smiled, rushing over to him and hugging him. He could see some tears forming, but ignored them as she smiled at the food. He already knew what she was thinking, that this was not a dream. She was safe.

"Good morning Eri! Are you hungry?" Eri nodded, drooling just a little bit.

"How about you shower first? Do you want me to come?" Another nod. Covering the omelettes to keep them warm he went and sat by the door of the baths. Ten minutes later they were eating, Eri wearing a small pink sundress. She seemed to like dresses, she had stared at the small collection she now had for minutes before Izuku had suggested the one she was in. In the present Izuku laughed as Eri dug into the meal with vigour, making him smile as she told him how "really yummy," it was. Soon Izuku was cleaning up while Eri was enraptured by the TV once more, giggling at a kid's cartoon. Afterwards Izuku quickly went up to the room and changed into the UA track uniform before grabbing his notebook, the only one he had since it had been in his school bag, and began writing.

"What's that?" Eri asked, having left her spot on the couch in favour of sitting next to Izuku. Izuku looked away, slightly embarrassed.

"It's my hobby. Quirk Analysis. I look at people's quirks and try to figure out as much as I can based on what I know. It's a big part of being a hero, knowing who's quirk will help the most and how to defeat a villain's quirks." He paused, but wasn't left waiting for long as Eri responded.

"That's really cool!" She exclaimed, hopping up to stand on her chair and get a better look.

"Eri! We sit in chairs, okay?" Izuku laughed, moving the notebook over so she could see. Her amazement only grew as he showed her more and more of the notebook, and by the end she looked at him with twinkling eyes.

"Quirks are really cool!" She declared, before turning the pages back to the first one. Sketched out in pencil with various notes covering the page was the visage of All Might. He had started almost every notebook with him, his favourite hero. She looked at it with wonder.

"This is All Might?" Izuku nodded.

"The greatest hero ever. You're going to meet him today! His real name is Toshinori Yagi, but I could never call him that." He said, rubbing the back of his head. Eri smiled and poked Izuku's arms to get his attention.

"Can I do this?"

"Do what Eri?"

"This!" She said, pointing to the notebook.

"Quirk Analysis?"

"Mmhmm." She nodded her head vigorously. Izuku chuckled and nodded back.

"Sure, I was around 4 when I started!" Eri cheered, which immediately turned into a yelp as a bell rang out. Izuku blinked, before the tone belted out again, followed by someone yelling from the door.

"HEY! YOU KIDS IN THERE? IT'S TIME TO HEAD TO BETA!" they yelled. Izuku jumped and looked at the clock. The clock hands were at 8:45.

"Are you ready to go Eri?" Eri nodded meekly, her enthusiasm having dropped considerably at the reality of someone actually picking them up. However, despite that, she didn't waver as they walked to the front door, one hand firmly grasping Izuku's own as she walked slightly behind him. Izuku smiled at her comfortingly before opening the door.

"Hey kid, you may not–"

"WOAH! You're Present Mic! I knew you taught here, but I didn't think I would be meeting you so soon! I have seen you on the news a lot since you started doing hero work, and I think it's ingenious how you use your quirk in combat! Can you control the pitch of your voice? If you could do that then you could probably alter the frequency enough that you could be more effective–"

Hizashi stared as the kid in front of him devolved into muttering, his words beginning to blur into one sound in his excitement. He blinked and looked down at the small girl behind him. The last he had seen of her she had been filthy, dressed in rags, and screaming to see "Izu". This, he decided as he looked at her (now clean and better clothed), was much better.

"Voice." She muttered, looking at him, eyes narrowed in concentration. He blinked, not expecting her to talk. Even the muttering teen stopped to look at her in surprise, and she blushed under their stares.

"His quirk is voice." He blinked again, confused, but Izuku smiled brightly.

"You remembered! He was near the beginning of the book! Good job Eri!" Hizashi shook his head. This was his chance, before the boy started muttering again.

"Alright kid, before you go off again we gotta go! I got a car here, but it's still a drive to get to Beta!" He said, his voice naturally coming out in its 'announcer mode'. Izuku blushed.

"Oh, y-y-ya. Sorry about that. I just don't get to meet any real heroes often, s-so I got a little excited, that a-all." Once more Hizashi found himself surprised as the confident (and muttering) kid was turned into the stuttering shy boy before him. Strange. Looking down at his watch he gestured to the car.

"No problem kid! Now let's get a move on! And don't worry kid, here at UA there won't be a shortage of Pro Heroes for you to meet!"

That seemed to work, Hizashi noted, as Izuku seemed to break at the thought of meeting more heroes. Luckily he still had motor function, so when the pro told him to get in the car he complied. It wasn't long after that he was kicking them out at the entrance, the massive gates having already been opened for the day. Inside appeared to be a massive city-like area, with roads and buildings and even cars.

 _How do they afford all of this?!_ Izuku thought. His musings were interrupted by the squeal of tires from behind him.

"Sit tight right here! They'll be here in a couple minutes!" Present Mic yelled as he drove away, loud music blaring from the speakers. True to the pro's word, less than a minute a car drove up. Izuku waved as All Might and Aizawa exited and walked over.

"Young Midoriya! How did you like the dorm?"

"It w-was amazing All Might! It worked perfectly for us, though it was a little big…"

"Haha, of course it's big, it is meant for an entire class, not just one person."

"Are you finished yet?" Aizawa cut in, glaring at the number one pro, "I have work to do today, so if we are going to do this it's going to be now. Understood?" Izuku nodded quickly, and after a second All Might did as well.

"Aizawa is right, no point putting it off." With a deep breath his skeletal form swelled, and after a moment the top hero stood before them in all his glory. Eri looked startled at the sudden transformation, her grip on Izuku's shirt tightening. He reached over and began dragging Izuku (and Eri who was clinging to Izuku's back) through the entrance.

" **ALRIGHT YOUNG MIDORIYA, THIS IS IT. THE DAY YOU SHALL FINALLY RECEIVE MY POWER, THE BEGINNING OF YOUR JOURNEY!** " The pro came to a halt as they came into an intersection, stopping right in the middle of the street, " **THERE IS BUT ONE THING LEFT FOR YOU TO DO BEFORE YOU CAN TAKE MY POWER!** "

"What do I need to do All Might?" Izuku asked. Eri looked up at him as he did, and as she stared she felt an odd sense of safety. The look on Izuku's face… his eyes filled with determination, sparking with energy, Eri had never seen anything so comforting in her life. Looking between the two men before her she could see the differences. All Might, Izuku's hero, was so huge. She could feel his steps through the ground, feel his power in how he spoke. And yet, despite their physical differences the look in their eyes was identical, as was the feeling they gave her.

These were her heroes.

As Eri stared at the two in front of her in wonder All Might raised a hand in response to Izuku's question, and with a definitive tug pulled a strand of hair from his head.

" **EAT THIS!"** Izuku and Eri blinked.

"WHAT?!"

* * *

" **FASTER YOUNG MIDORIYA!** " All Might called out, dodging out of the way a second before a hand touched him. Said hand, and the body attached, spun as the pro dodged. In a flash of emerald sparks he was now above the hero, reaching to touch even a hair. His frustration grew as his hand swiped through empty air, All Might having moved at the last second yet again.

It had been a couple hours since Izuku had gagged down the hair from his predecessor. As he had explained, it would take some time to kick in, as his DNA had to be digested in order for it to transfer. In the meantime he had suggested training, which had since devolved into what Eri would later describe as "the best game of tag ever!" Izuku's goal was to touch All Might, by any means necessary, while All Might was to dodge. Izuku had thought that with his ability to teleport he would have had a major advantage, but he had been very wrong.

With a thump he hit the ground, his breath being knocked from his lungs. From the sidelines he heard Eri cheering for him and he gave a shaky thumbs up in her general direction. Just how fast was All Might that he could dodge _teleporting_? To be fair, he couldn't teleport very far, and he had to wait a second or so before teleporting again, but still.

" **ALL RIGHT, PERHAPS IT'S TIME TO TAKE A LITTLE BREAK,** " All Might called out, before grabbing some water from a nearby cooler. At the sudden halt of sound Aizawa looked up from the book he had been reading, something called 'Tales of a Gutsy Ninja'. At seeing the two approaching he frowned.

"Wasn't this supposed to be done by now? You hardly need my help at this point, wouldn't it have been more logical to call me _after_ the power awakened? All Might shrugged and deflated, sipping some water (Izuku privately thought it was bizarre how he wasn't winded in the slightest) while Izuku poured the water into his own mouth.

" **It should be kicking in soon Aizawa, don't worry. Besides, I've been meaning to check out Young Midoriya's combat abilities for some time, this seemed like the perfect opportunity.** " Aizawa rolled his eyes and turned back to his book.

As they spoke Eri walked over to Izuku, a juice box in hand.

"Do you want some juice?" She asked the panting boy. Izuku nodded and took the box from her, his breathing steadying as he took his break. He turned to thank Eri, but something about how she was looking at him was different.

"Is everything alright Eri?" Eri nodded enthusiastically.

"Mmhmm!" She said. Eyes sparkling. He raised a brow, and she looked over at All Might. Shrugging, he went back to drinking, only to be interrupted.

"You are really cool Izu!" Eri said, quiet enough that only Izuku heard, and he recognized that tone. Looking over at the little girl he saw her smiling at him, her eyes sparkling, much like he had once looked at other heroes (how he still looked at other heroes). He laughed and reached over, pulling her into a side hug.

"Your daddy is really cool too! Why didn't you write that in your book?"

Over with the teachers All Might smiled and laughed as he watched Izuku descend into a red, stuttering mess at something Eri said. At Aizawa's questioning glare (he was actually quite proud that he was able to tell the glares apart) he explained.

" **THAT LOOK THAT SHE WAS JUST GIVING HIM? SO FULL OF WONDER AND AWE, LIKE HE WAS UNBELIEVABLY COOL? THAT WAS EXACTLY HOW YOUNG MIDORIYA LOOKED AT ME WHEN WE FIRST MET. SHE MAY BE YOUNG, BUT I DO BELIEVE LITTLE ERI WILL BE FOLLOWING IN HER NEW GUARDIAN'S FOOTSTEPS IN THE FUTURE!** "

"Well," Aizawa muttered as All Might turned back to the two and called out for Midoriya, "At least she will be driven. I hope this doesn't take too much longer…"

"It won't Mr. Aizwa," a timid voice interrupted him, slurring his name slightly. Eri was looking at her feet, having wandered back to him as the two enthusiastic people began racing around the area again, this time sparring. She may not have been looking directly at him, but he could still see the glint in her eyes.

 _Damn, All Might was right, she is going to end up JUST like Midoriya. Hopefully we can keep his stupid habits away from her though. I don't want her to mutter, one kid doing that is annoying enough._

"What do you mean kid?" He asked, his voice never betraying any real emotion beyond bored.

"Izu will do it, just wait!"

As it turns out, they didn't have to wait long.

Some twenty minutes later, Izuku was trying to keep tears from leaking from his eyes. Yes, he was frustrated, but the tears were more for the enormous amount of HAPPINESS, JOY, EXCITEMENT, that he was feeling since he was FINALLY SPARRING WITH ALL MIGHT! Yes, he knew the pro was holding back, but that didn't matter. He was actually physically training against his hero, his idol! However, It was taking all his skill and strength just to keep himself from being instantly crushed.

" **COME NOW, YOUNG MIDORIYA, CAN'T YOU FEEL IT? THE RUSH, THE EXCITEMENT? LOOK DEEP INSIDE, IZUKU, AND SEARCH FOR THE POWER YOU NOW POSSESS!** " All Might called out, sending punches out sporadically to throw the boy off guard. He knew that the power had entered into his system, more than enough time had passed. But how would they coax it out? He had been trying to shout motivational things for a while now, but that wasn't exactly working.

In his distraction, All Might threw another half-effort punch, and blanched as he felt it connect with something. Eyes wide, he watched as Izuku rocketed away, having been just a second too slow to avoid the hit. He cringed, knowing the boy would feel that in the morning. As he was sent flying, he looked forwards to see the side of a building approaching.

 _Damn it! I couldn't get even one hit in! Once I hit that wall I'm out for sure!_ Izuku watched as the wall slowly got closer and closer, time seemingly slowing down as his brain worked in overdrive. _If I could just get behind him I think I could land a hit. Just one hit, but then I could show him, show Mr. Aizawa too, that I have what it takes to be a hero!_

Too soon the wall was there, and as he was about to hit it he yelled, letting his frustration flow out of him.

 _I WILL BE A HERO!_

As he yelled internally he felt his quirk respond to his plea. His power filled him, but he knew it was pointless. He was over 100 feet away from the pro, over ten times his limit. There was no w-

All of a sudden his mind stopped as the familiar tug was replaced with a heart stopping _wrench_. There was no way to describe it fully, but if he had to try Izuku would say that instead of the drip of power his quirk had been, it was now a raging river. His body flashed, and he watched as instead of the emerald sparks he was used to after all these years, literal arcs of emerald energy whipped off him instead, like a hundred lightning bolts jumping from under his skin. Just as suddenly as it came it ended, and Izuku blinked as a solid wall still approached him. But instead of a wall of stone and steel, this wall was bade of bone and muscle.

 _I did it!_ Izuku cried out in his mind. He had one shot at this, one chance. Not bothering with subtlety he pulled his arm back. The power he had just felt filled his arm, the lightning bursting from under his skin once more as he recalled what All Might had said once they had begun the training.

 _When you feel the power, you'll know kid. And when that time comes, pull back your fist, clench your butt, and yell 'SMASH' as loudly as you can. Trust me, it'll be easy!_

Taking a deep breath, he screamed as he sent his fist rocketing forward.

"SMAAAAASSSSHHHHH!"

To meet open air.

All Might had ducked at the very last second having anticipated the attack after the boy had disappeared, but he hadn't expected what followed. As his arm struck nothing the air in front of the boy was caught in a whirlwind of force, the air pressure launching like a cannon. However, what accompanied the air was what caught everyone, Izuku included, off guard.

Streaking ahead of the wind storm the punch had created, a massive emerald bolt of energy was sent flying. The bolt glowed brightly, enough that the observers had to shield their eyes as the attack leapt through the air. A second later a massive explosion was heard, and a harsh wind filled the area, pushing them back from where the bolt had contacted… something.

After the wind and light died down, Izuku looked to see what was in front of him. As he did his eyes widened in both shock and horror. The buildings that had been there… were gone. In a straight line from Izuku to some point near the edge of the city there was simply nothing. The ground was scorched, glowing still from where the bolt had passed by. The debris that hadn't been destroyed by the energy had been blown away by the wind, and from here they could see several large chunks of buildings embedded in the massive walls.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH"

Izuku let out a scream as he hit the ground a second later. Luckily All Might had been standing near the ground when he had flickered to him, so the fall was only a few feet. And yet, despite the short distance, pain filled his mind, mainly focussed on his right arm. Instantly All Might was beside him, and a second later Aizawa walked up, whistling at the wholesale destruction in front of him. The impressed look was replaced with a scowl as he looked down at the teenager though, and it was not hard to tell why.

His track suit was gone, the jacket having been burnt away from the lightning leaving his body. His upper body was covered by lightning-like burns, and his right arm was broken. And not just a simple fracture, no, his arm looked like it had been demolished from the inside-out. His hand though… The hand must have been where the emerald bolt had originated, as his hand was an absolute mess. He cringed and turned his back, intent on keeping Eri away from the boy. While he was aware the girl's powers could be useful here, they didn't really know what she did and he would rather not risk it. All Might caught on and picked the boy up in his arms.

" **I'LL TAKE HIM TO RECOVERY GIRL. IT LOOKS BAD, BUT I DOUBT THERE ARE ANY MAJOR INJURIES BEYOND HIS ARM. MEET US AT THE MAIN BUILDING.** "

Aizawa nodded as All Might launched into the air and looked over at the now crying Eri, who's face looked like an odd combination of awe, worry, and panic. He activated his quirk as her horn began to glow and went over to her, leading her to the car.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine. We just want to be efficient, so let's get to the car and hurry up. The faster we get there, the faster you see Midoriya." He sighed, having to pick up the pace immediately after that as the little girl began sprinting as fast as her little legs could take her.

 _I swear, these brats are going to be the end of me_.

* * *

Eri rushed into the room just in time to see Izuku standing up, staring at his hand while the older pro hero finished healing him up. Aizawa had been scary, but he had got them to the main building quickly. As she lunged to hug the boy Recovery Girl finished her tirade.

"My goodness child, you were just in here. Now, I've healed you up, but that power is dangerous. Whatever that energy did, not even my quirk could fully fix it. Those scars are going to have to act as a reminder to you from now one. You need to get your body used to that power, gain some sort of control, understand? I refuse to treat you if you are going to do this to your body every time you use it." Izuku nodded, one hand running through Eri's hair as he looked down at his right arm. "You need to be more careful," The heroine continued softer, her voice soothing, "or eventually you will find yourself unable to move, much less protect those close to you."

Izuku nodded again, but couldn't seem to look away from his hand. Most of the burns had faded under Recovery Girl's treatment, leaving thin lines across his upper body. He didn't really care, he already had an assortment of scars across his body from the actions of his classmates. None of them were too serious, just little burns and cuts that hadn't healed properly. In fact, he counted himself lucky that Recovery Girl hadn't told anyone about those yet… he had been careful to always have a shirt of some sorts to cover his abdomen when talking to everyone else. And yet, nothing compared to the scars that now covered his right hand. His palm was a mess, the point from which the bolt of power had leapt from his hand was mostly scar tissue now. The back of his hand was scarred as well, though not nearly as badly. The scars reached up to his forearm before fading into the lightning-like lines that used to be the burns that covered him. He winced as he closed it into a fist. The muscles were tight. Internally he noted that he would have to add some gloves and long sleeved shirts to his closet when he got his stuff from home.

While he was numbly looking down at his hand Izuku felt something that threw him off guard. Fear. This was All Might's power. Was he really ready? Well, he didn't really have a choice now, but still… what he had done, to the city and himself…

Looking down at Eri as she tugged at his sleeve absentmindedly he turned back to Recovery Girl.

"I promise. I won't let it happen again." He said quietly before thanking the nurse and heading out to find All Might. The search wasn't very long, as they found the pro waiting in the hallway by the infirmary, his now skeletal frame alone.

"There you are Young Midoriya, how are you?" Izuku frowned and looked down at his hand.

"I'm alright, but she couldn't heal my hand all the way." Izuku said. All Might took a look before shaking his head, looking all of a sudden depressed.

"I'm sorry kid, I hadn't thought about how One for All would work with your quirk. If I had, we could have been better prepared."

"I-It's okay All Might," Izuku responded, shocked at his mentor's sudden depression and shaking his head rapidly in response, "I mean I didn't even realize what it would do and it was my quirk." Izuku's voice dropped off at the end.

The two looked at each other before Izuku dropped his gaze. All Might sighed and put a hand on his shoulder, noting the flinch that accompanied it. He lead the two children over to a couple of seats that were outside the infirmary and they sat down, Izuku staring at his hand. Eri sat next to them, settling on Izuku's lap and looking up at All Might.

"What's bugging you kid?" For several seconds Izuku simply continued to stare, but as All Might went to ask again he spoke up.

"I destroyed those buildings… if that had been real, if there had been people..." Ah. All Might cringed. That's what this was about. He should have known. When he had first received One for All his teacher had brought him up to the mountians and showed him the full extent of her power. She had shown him exactly what he was agreeing to take, and to warn him how careful he would have to be. He had forgotten exactly how powerful that lesson had been.

"Midoriya," The boy looked up to him, and his heart went out to the boy. His eyes, often sparkling with joy and wonder were now sparkling with unshed tears. "Listen Midoriya. My power, your power now, is dangerous. One for All is a tool, and as you have witnessed it could be used to destroy cities as if they were made of glass. Even more so, with your quirk being added to it. But it isn't the quirk that makes a hero, it's the hero that uses the quirk. One day you should meet a young man here at UA, I've heard that he's quite something. Despite having an objectively weak quirk, he has made himself into one of the best fighters around. Point is, Young Midoriya, you simply need to grasp this power, control it instead of letting it control you. And worry not, for I am here, and I will help." Izuku chuckled as he said his catchphrase, and he took a deep breath. All Might smiled as the twinkle came back to his eyes, determination clear in his gaze.

"You're right, All Might. I may not understand this power well, but I promise that I will work to make it my own. I will take One for All and I'll learn how to use it!" In his lap Eri cheered. She honestly didn't understand everything, but Izuku had been sad, and now he wasn't! That alone was worth her cheering.

All Might chuckled.

"All right Midoriya, how about you get going then. You and Eri get home, take the afternoon. Starting tomorrow we'll get to work training your new power!" Izuku nodded, the fire back in his eyes as he said goodbye. As he began walking Eri lingered, looking at All Might with wonder. All Might smiled down at her and she smiled back. Her thoughts raced as she tried to think of what to say… If this was Izu's dad, then…

"Everything okay Eri?" All Might asked. Eri nodded decisively and looked over to the direction Izuku was slowly walking.

"Mmhmm. I'll see you tomorrow, Grandpa Toshi!" With that she ran over to Izuku, leaving All Might staring after the two as they turned down the hallway, heading home. Shaking his head he let a chuckle out.

"Well, I think I know why Izuku was blushing earlier." He said to himself before getting up and walking towards his new office. With Izuku here he would have to be careful not to let his role as a new teacher slip…

* * *

One week later, Izuku was upset. Despite training every day, he had yet to even begin to grasp how to control One for All. Well, that was a little unfair. Flickering had become much easier, and now he could literally flicker to anywhere he could see. It still amazed him, how the extra power from One for All had effected Tesseract. Then again, it wasn't that surprising. Using One for All, though, still alluded him. Aizawa stood by every time he tried and shut down his power each time the energy grew too turbulent. He knew he was missing something, but he wasn't sure. At first he had tried focussing the power in a specific part of his body, but All Might had quickly pointed out after the third broken finger that he wasn't going to be very useful if he broke all the bones in his body. So he set about finding out a better way. All Might didn't need to destroy himself to use One for All, so he knew it was possible. That sentiment was only reinforced by an irate Recovery Girl after he came into the infirmary with another broken hand.

Not all was bad news though. The day after his first training Recovery Girl had pulled him aside and ran some tests to better understand his quirk. In the end they hadn't discovered anything new, expect 2 things. One, his nexus had grown in size and intensity. The difference was staggering, One for All was literally just an unending reservoir of energy. The second things they learned was why Izuku couldn't transport other people without hurting himself.

As they discovered, flickering was complicated to say the least. Basically Izuku's nexus was constantly letting energy flow through Izuku. When he flickered the energy rose just above his skin and teleported everything within that field. Non-living matter was included in this field with little effort. However, when the field was presented with something biological it had to permeate it like it did Izuku. In order to do that it had to forcefully flow into the matter, and yet be controlled enough to not injure them. This combination was too much for Izuku's body, which suffered as the nexus shot damaging levels of energy through him. In other words, it was likely Izuku would never be able to teleport others without injury to himself.

Izuku sighed as he looked out the window of the car. Eri was in the other seat, staring in wonder at the signs and buildings. The world was much more amazing to her now that she was free, and he was happy she could enjoy the sights. They had fallen into a routine that week, living together was actually quite easy. They would wake up, eat some breakfast, then head over for training around 10. Training lasted until 2 pm, so All Might usually brought some food for the group. Somehow they had managed to fix the entire Beta course in a night (Izuku was pretty sure that Cementoss, the cement hero, had something to do with it as he was a teacher at UA), so they continued to train there. Since they had seen them every day, Eri had gotten much more comfortable around the two adults. Izuku thought he would have a heart attack the first time he heard Eri call All Might "Grandpa Toshi", but he couldn't bring himself to do anything but smile as she stared at the pro with unrestrained wonder. All Might never complained, so he supposed the hero was fine with it.

The real surprise came from Aizawa. On the third day, with permission from Recovery Girl, he had slowly coaxed Eri into agreeing to practice with her quirk. Her initial response to his question had been panic, her horn flaring as she cried, "No! My quirk makes people disappear, I don't want to do it!" It took Izuku to calm her down after that, and they spent the rest of the day with Recovery Girl, slowly testing what they could with her quirk.

Rewind. That was the name that they finally settled on. The testing itself was a trial, and Izuku felt his heart break at the fear he saw in Eri's eyes every time her quirk activated. He made up for it by holding her close when it wasn't active. Finally, after long hours, they had found that her quirk didn't make things 'disappear' as Eri had initially thought. In fact, it didn't even work on inanimate objects. Her quirk, unique as it was, allowed her to take living matter and 'rewind' it back to a previous state. She had no control though, so when her panic took over she would rewind things back to before they existed. When Eri had learned her power wasn't just to make things vanish, to kill, she had cried for joy, holding onto Izuku as if she would never get another chance. Recovery Girl had made another discovery as well. Despite its power, Eri couldn't seem to activate the power when she was asleep. It took real, imminent panic to cause her quirk to react, and thankfully her body knew when it was dreaming.

Though she still referred to Aizawa as "Aizwa", after that day the growly teacher seemed to take a liking to the girl. He even got her practicing activating her quirk, promising each time to erase it as soon as her horn started to glow.

A bump interrupted Izuku's thoughts again as the vehicle rolled to a stop. The door opened a second later as Aizawa gestured for them to get out. Izuku smiled as he looked up at the building that he had been raised in.

They had decided that this weekend would be the best time for Izuku to return home, with Aizawa as a guard, to get some stuff to decorate his room and some clothes. Aizawa frowned as he looked over to the kid, specifically his new attire. While he wore t-shirts for training, the boy had taken to wearing a pair of fingerless gloves and a dark green long sleeved shirt, likely to hide the scars that now dominated his right forearm and hand.

Quickly, as to avoid attention, they made their way up to the apartment. After a few knocks the door was opened by Inko, who let them in without a fuss. No, that was saved until after they were inside, and it included tears and hugging and _damn it how was it possible to cry THAT much?_ She gave both Izuku and Eri hugs, and though she was shy they could tell that Eri liked the motherly attention from Inko. All of the stuff that Izuku needed was already packed in a box, but he (and Eri, who never left his side) said he needed a couple shirts from his room first.

As they left Aizawa watched the proud smile on Inko's face fade slightly, a bit of sadness filling in.

"Mrs. Midoriya, I have to thank you again for allowing this," Aizawa said, trying to be as polite as he could be. To his (inward) surprise Inko simply shook her head.

"He hurt himself, didn't he? Just like his father, Izuku never wants anyone to worry." Aizawa took a moment before nodding.

"He did. This week he somehow accumulated a lot of power, the effects of which were devastating. Not to worry though Ma'am, as you can see we take our student's safety very seriously at UA." Inko laughed at this, prompting a raised eyebrow from the erasure hero.

"Izuku isn't a student though," Inko pointed out. Aizawa shrugged as Inko put some treats for Izuku and Eri into their microwave.

"Don't tell him I said this, I WILL deny it, but he practically is. Honestly I am sure that All Might wants to recommend him, but I don't think it's a good idea. Still, he should pass the entrance exam, as long as he doesn't do anything stupid or illogical."

Inko nodded, smiling brightly as Izuku came back carrying a few long sleeved shirts as well as an old All Might themed hoodie that Eri was wearing. It was slightly too big, but even Aizawa had to admit that it looked adorable.

"Ready to go?" Aizawa asked. He didn't want to spend too much time out in the open.

"Almost!" Izuku said, "I just need to grab my Quirk books." Eri cheered at this, and Aizawa once again found himself raising an eyebrow. Izuku saw this and blushed as Inko grabbed one of the 12 books that were on the table next to a small pile of empty notebooks. She handed one to the teacher and he began flipping through Vol. 7.

In all honesty, he was impressed. Very impressed. This kid had clearly put a lot of work into these. His surprise multiplied as he came across a certain page. "Eraser Head" the title read. The info was a little dated, but all in all it was incredible for someone who had presumably never even seen him before.

"Izuku has been doing these ever since he was 4 years old!" Ink gushed, "Ever since…" her voice trailed off and Aizawa looked over to see her looking at a visibly deflated Izuku. She seemed hesitant, Aizawa noted, but his gaze was drawn in as Izuku started talking.

"Ever since I w-was told I didn't have a quirk." He said. He didn't even look up as he continued, on, leafing through one of the quirk analysis books as he did. "My q-quirk didn't manifest until about two years ago. My n-n-nexus was so small at that age that it wasn't a s-surprise that no one noticed it."

Aizawa nodded, some things falling into place. 9 years without a quirk would mean a lot of bullies, especially in a lower income area like this one.

"After I awakened it I started training to b-become a hero in secret. That way I could surprize everyone when I got into UA." So it was 11 years then. "But now l-look at m-me! I am doing my best to be a hero! And even though I've only had Tesseract for a little while I can control my nexus really… well…" H trailed off, his eyes narrowing in concentration. Not catching his look Inko responded.

"That's great Izuku! I remember when you first started using your quirk around the house. I could always tell when you were about to teleport since you had to charge up your entire body first." She said, taking the treats out of the microwave. "Oh dear, I think it's time to get a new microwave. This old one keeps only heating up parts of the food."

As she finished, Izuku's eyes suddenly widened as he turned to one of his books, flipping through it while muttering up a storm. Aizawa rolled his eyes as Inko began apologizing for her son's muttering as the buzzing of his voice began to fill the entire apartment. Eri simply sat there, obviously used to Izuku doing this as she admired her new hoodie. The muttering was so fast that the other occupants could only catch a few words as he rambled on.

"Two, no, one… Just my arm… Same energy pathways… More power… whole body… I am the pastry!" He muttered along.

Just as Aizawa's patience was about to reach its end, Izuku clapped the book shut and ran out the front door. The three looked after him until a few seconds later a crash could be heard. Rushing outside they looked over the balcony to see Izuku laying by some knocked over trash cans.

"Izuku?!" Inko cried out.

"Sorry!" He called back, "But I think I figured it out!"

The group watched as Izuku stood up and closed his eyes. He stood like that for a second before sparks of energy began to build on his skin before growing into miniature arcs of lightning. It was nowhere near the intensity it was when he was going all out, those were more like actual bolts of lightning, but it was definitely more than the old sparks that used to cover his body. On top of that, this was constant rather than a flash, as it had been in the past.

"What's he thinking?" Aizawa muttered to himself. Not a moment after that Izuku opened his eyes, glowing slightly as energy crackled ominously within them. Then he moved.

In a flash he had jumped, moving with power and speed far beyond that which was normal, and planted a foot against one of the walls, he was practically an emerald blur. Thanks to his practice with his own quirk he was able to quickly jump between walls and in a flash he was nearly up at the apartments level. Aizawa let his eyes go wide in shock as the shy boy sped towards them, moving with a grace he hadn't attributed to him before, when one of his feet slipped. A cry rang out and a flash filled the air as he flickered, landing roughly on the floor before them. Inko looked down at him in shock.

"Izuku…"

"What was that?" Aizawa cut in. Izuku stood and chuckled, scratching the back of his head, but answered enthusiastically.

"I figured it out! Those pastries? They're me!"

"Do you have a concussion?" Aizawa asked, glaring at the boy. Izuku blushed and shook his head.

"No, I don't mean that I'm literally a pastry. But all this week, training with you guys, I've been trying to build up the power in my arm, like some sort of switch! But that leaves the rest of my body 'cold' like the pastry! I just needed to keep the charge running to my entire body, which wasn't too hard since I already have energy running throughout me. And then…" Izuku closed his eyes and the three watched as lightning began flickering around him again. After a few seconds it shut off, and Izuku smiled tiredly at them. "All I can manage is about 5% though, and even that was pushing it. My muscles feel pretty sore."

As Izuku looked up he nearly died in shock. Aizawa, the stoic hero, the sleep deprived slave driver at training, was smiling slightly.

"Good job Midoriya. Now hurry up and get your stuff down to the car, as efficiently as possible. We were supposed to be out of here a while ago."

Izuku rushed off, a little off put by his teachers nonchalant attitude about his success. As he ran into the apartment with Eri Aizawa sighed and looked out over the edge.

"He's grown so much…" Inko said, looking into the apartment. "It's only been a week."

"He's different," Aizawa said quietly and with a huff, "But he is still an idiot. No offence Mrs. Midoriya, but I hope your son is in someone else's class. Whichever class has him is going to be a big hassle, that's for sure." Inko smiled as Izuku and Eri rushed past, going down the stairs and putting his stuff in the car before coming up and giving Inko a hug, Eri joining in hesitantly. She bade them goodbye as they walked down and got in the car. Her tears flowed freely as the doors shut.

"Mr. Aizawa?" Inko questioned before he opened his own door. A raised eyebrow was the response, so she continued. "Please, take care of Izuku. He's special to me. I know he wants to be a hero, but keep him safe." Aizawa nodded, and Inko began walking back to the apartment. However, just as he was about to enter the car he heard her say one more thing, muttered to herself.

"I hope _they_ don't notice."

She was gone before he could ask, and so he slipped into the vehicle and began the drive back to the school. Her words echoing in his mind.

Little did the group know but there was one other observer present. Across the street, a blonde watched confusedly as Izuku, who had disappeared a week ago, get into a car with some old tired man and a little girl. He glared as they drove away.

"Damn it, Deku! What the hell is going on? You better hope that I figure out what the hell you've been doing soon, or I'm going to kill you so fast you'll be begging for it!" He yelled out. He turned and started walking again, lugging the bag of junk behind him. Curse that stupid old hag mom of his, why the hell did he have to walk all this way to take grab his mom's crappy sowing stuff? Oh well, maybe he would find some twerp to terrify on the way.

Little did Bakugo know, he wouldn't get the chance to see Deku again until nearly a month later. It was a day that both teens would later remember fondly, for very different reasons. It was the beginning of their lives as true heroes, a step that they had to take.

It was the morning of the UA Entrance Exams.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading! Next up, the Entrance Exam, and two fated meetings. I hope you enjoyed it, as always please leave a review! See you guys next time!**

 **GlitchCrafter out!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey everyone! Back again with a new chapter of The Nexus Hero! Hope you guys enjoy the chapter. Real quick though, I'm going to answer a few questions that I saw in the reviews. As a side note, thank you to everyone who has left a review so far. I read every one and really appreciate that you take the time to do that, make me feel like my writing is actually worth it!**

 **So first up from Deepthoughts42: As far as I know, and as how it explains it in cannon, One for All is basically just a massive pool of collected energy. Since All Might and Izuku don't have quirks, they can only strengthen their physical bodies. Now, I don't want to spoil anything if you aren't current with the manga, but I can definitely say that it is possible to have a quirk strengthened by One for All and still use the muscle enhancing part of OFA.**

 **Duskrider: In the chapter Izuku's mom is making pastries in their microwave which is broken. Sorry of that wasn't clear!**

 **If anyone else has any questions feel free to PM me! Or just ask in the reviews and I'll do my best to remember to answer them. As always, I do not own My Hero Academia, even though I wish I did. Hope you all enjoy the chapter! PLUS ULTRA!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

"IZU IZU IZU!" came the excited cry. Izuku let out an "oof" as a weight jumped on his chest, shaking him. Groggily he opened his eyes, his gaze focussing on smiling face of Eri as she shook him awake.

"Wake up Izu!" She whined, poking him in the face. He yawned as he stretched. Eri was waking him up? This didn't happen very often, as he usually worked out long before she woke up. The only reason she'd be up this early would be...

"Izzuu, we're going to be late!" She cried out, and he heard more than saw her run across the room and grab some clothes to bring to the showers.

"Slow down Eri," He laughed as clothes began to fly across the room, flung from the closet. She seemed to be picking out clothes for him now, and he laughed as he stepped out of bed. He reached over and grabbed his clothes from off the floor where Eri had tossed them before grabbing their shower stuff. Eri cheered and rushed out the door as Izuku followed behind her.

One month. That's about how long they had been living at Heights Alliance. Izuku had continued training, and up until about a week ago he had been getting tutored as well. Most of it was simple online classes, enough to keep his grades up and prepare him for the written portion of the entrance exam, but it sure felt like school to him. Luckily it was only 4 hours a day, and so by 2:00 they were training with quirks. While he could now maintain Full Cowl (the name for his new way of using his quirks), he still couldn't manage anything above 8% without damaging himself. Even 8% was pushing that limit to the extreme. Meanwhile, Eri still couldn't do much with hers as it was pretty dangerous to practice on someone, but she was getting better and better at stopping it from overflowing. However, despite that Izuku was content, knowing he was doing fairly well… or rather he HAD been when it was JUST quirks. Aizawa had decided a couple weeks back that Izuku's fighting skills were… inadequate.

"Alright Midoriya, here." The teacher handed the confused boy a medium sized box.

"Umm… Mr. Aizawa? What is t-this?" He asked, nearly dropping it as he took it. It was much heavier than he expected.

"Weights." Izuku looked at the box in confusion.

"What?" Aizawa sighed. He hated explaining.

"You want to become a Hero? Then you're going to have to learn to fight. I can't stand watching you scream 'smash' every time you throw a punch. So you are going to train. Every day. Got it?" By the end of his sentence the was glaring, and Izuku was nodding quickly.

"Y-y-yes sir!" He replied. And so it began. Every day he would train his quirk, and after All Might was done Aizawa would take him. Apparently there was a Dojo on campus (Izuku wasn't really that surprised after the CITY that they had built), so Izuku spent a few hours training there too. He wasn't beyond the beginner stuff, but even then he could feel a huge difference. When you were moving as fast as he could, knowing how to throw a punch properly and how to move your feet could change everything in a fight. Not that it helped against All Might or Aizawa, as both could still wipe the floor with him, even when holding back.

"Hurry! Hurry!" the sound of Eri's chanting broke him from his thoughts. He looked up from the pancakes that were on his plate. They had already showered and dressed, and after this they were going to head out. All Might had said he would watch Eri during the test. The little girl was practically shaking with anticipation, though Izuku knew that the energy would fade exponentially once they were in public. She was actually a fairly energetic child, but whenever anyone that wasn't him or All Might (and to a lesser extent Aizawa) were by she would revert to shyness by default. Today she was dressed in her ever present All Might hoodie, which she insisted on wearing out whenever possible.

While her attire was standard, Izuku couldn't help but look down at his own outfit. A simple black jacket was over a dark green long-sleeved shirt. His right hand had a fingerless glove to hide the scars his first use of One for All had left on his palm. It wasn't that he was ashamed on anything… it's just that the scars on his hand were a reminder of the power that he held, and the destruction it could cause. He wasn't ready for all that, and the other kids would no doubt stare if they saw them. For now he kept the glove on.

"Alright," He laughed, ignoring the nervousness in his stomach, "I'm coming!" This was it. He paused as he stood at the door frame. By the end of the day he will have done everything he could to become a hero. It would officially be out of his hands. He glanced down at his now gloved hands and smiled before looking at Eri who was now trying to pull him along. As he locked the door to the dorm he took a deep breath. He had trained, had suffered, for this day.

"All right Eri! Time to take a test!" Eri cheered in response and the two began walking down the road. The sun was shining and it wasn't too cold, a perfect day indeed. Feeling surprisingly optimistic Izuku laughed as Eri (who had started Quirk Analysis all on her own now) talked about what kind of notebooks she wanted. Soon, far too soon for Izuku, he was handing her off to a sympathetic looking All Might.

"Don't stress Young Midoriya, you're going to be fine." And he was off, Eri asking him questions about his powers as they left.

Izuku took a deep breath as he stared at the entrance to the main building. Shaking slightly, he began moving forwards, heading to where the postings as to what room he would be taking the written test would be. However, after about three steps something collided with him, slamming into his back and roughly shoving him to the side. Quickly catching himself Izuku turned to see what-

"HEY, WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? I WAS – Deku?!" A loud, and familiar voice screamed. Izuku's eyes widened as he stared back at someone he hadn't seen for well over a month now. He looked confused, and angry (as usual). For a moment they simply just stared at each other, before Izuku couldn't take it anymore and looked away.

 _Of course Kacchan is here,_ Izuku thought, _All he could talk about was applying for UA! Stupid! Why didn't I expect this? But really, we haven't talked a lot since… since I discovered my Quirk._ Izuku's face darkened for a moment, and Bakugo glared.

"Deku…" He repeated menacingly. "I was wondering where you had run off to. Figures you'd find your way back before the exam. You're still planning on taking this thing, useless?"

"O-o-oh, hey K-Kacchan. W-w-well y-ya," Izuku replied, cursing his stutter, "I n-never gave up on being a h-h-hero! I just… I just h-had to go somewhere! YA! J-just a t-trip!" As he talked he began glancing around, rubbing the back of his head, and actively avoiding the explosion teen's eyes. He was a terrible liar, and for some reason that was only exaggerated when Bakugo was involved. Kacchan had always made him nervous. Said boy glared at him for a second longer, before huffing.

"Whatever loser. I can't wait to be finally rid of you, cause there's no way that someone like YOU will make it through the entrance exam. I hope you had a good trip, cause after today you're back to being Deku, got it? Back to poor defenseless Izuku." Having said his piece, Bakugo gave a sneer and walked off towards the entrance, growling. Damn Deku.

Izuku stared at the retreating figure of Bakugo, and sighed. Crisis averted. Looking around he saw that only a few people had stopped to look at their small confrontation, and found himself incredibly glad that Bakugo had refrained from screaming as he usually did. Taking a deep he looked towards the doors once more, his mind focused on Kacchan's words.

 _I am not the same boy I was 2 years ago. I am not useless, not defenseless. I have people counting on me now. All Might, Eri, even Aizawa_. He sweat-dropped as he thought of the last thing the sleep-deprived teacher had said to him, when he had been stressing about the test the previous day.

"Midoriya, shut up. You're being illogical. We all know you're going to pass one way or another, you're too stubborn to not make it in. I'm trying to get some sleep in before the semester starts you brat." He had said, wrapped up in his sleeping bag while Izuku practiced.

 _They all believe in me, so I just have to believe in myself_. With that thought he stepped forwards, confident that he was going to succeed. This was going to be a good day. If he could just get past all this nervous energy, he was certain that he would be okay.

And that thought stayed with him as his foot caught on an uneven edge of the sidewalk and he began falling to the ground.

 _Or I'll just die._

However, before he could flicker he felt a hand tap press against his back, and a strange feeling of weightlessness overtook him.

"What?!" He exclaimed as he looked down at the ground, which was oddly not rushing to meet his face.

"Oh, sorry!" A feminine voice called out, "Are you okay?" Looking over, Izuku was met with the sight of a somewhat familiar girl standing beside him. "You were falling, so I stopped you with my quirk! I hope you don't mind." She said with a smile, and Izuku felt his body freeze.

Wait… A… A… _Girl_?!

"Are you okay?" She repeated as she moved his floating body until his feet were touching the ground again. He blinked, unsure of how to answer as his tongue seemed to be disconnected from his brain at the moment. After a few seconds he managed out a response.

"Y-Y-YA, TH-THANK YOU!" he yelled out, a little too loudly, drawing the gaze of a few people. Blushing, he tried again with a quieter voice.

"I m-mean, thank you." She gave him a funny look before smiling again.

"I'm just glad I could stop you from falling." Izuku blinked for a second, before his eyes widened.

"W-w-wait! I remember y-you!" He said pointing at her, "I ran into you at the grocery store!" Ochako's brows scrunched for a moment before widening.

"Ran into… oh ya! Literally! You were the one that…" her voice cut off as a light pink dusted her cheeks as she recalled how he had helped her up. "A-anyways, my name is Ochako Uraraka. You're taking the hero exam too?" Izuku nodded excitedly.

"Ya! I've wanted to be a hero for as long as I can remember! I've been preparing for this for years!" Izuku smiled as he thought of the past few years. It had been quite the journey, but he was ready. With his family behind him he knew he would make it!

Ochako looked at the unnamed green haired boy before her. What was it that loud spikey haired boy called him? Deku? He seemed to be lost in thought a little, and she found herself wondering what exactly was going on behind those green eyes. Just a moment ago he had been acting incredibly shy, a little awkward too, but now his eyes sparkled with confidence, and his smile seemed soft yet determined.

"What are you two doing!" A voice interrupted them, crisp and loud, "The exams will be starting soon! This is no time to be hesitating, our future awaits!" With that a tall blue-haired blur ran by the two, and Ochako blushed as she realized that she had been staring at the boy in question. Cheeks flaming she started running towards the building.

"Well, it was nice meeting you Deku! I hope we're in the same class!" With that she ran inside, leaving Izuku to stare after her.

"Deku?" He questioned softly, confused. Before he got the chance to focus on why she was calling him Deku, a pang of doubt and pain racing through him as he thought of being known as Deku even here, the bell rang that signified only 20 minutes before the written exams start. With a murmured "crap" Izuku raced off to find his room.

* * *

2 hours later Izuku sat alone staring up at the sky. The test had gone well, or at least he thought so. He had always been pretty good at academic work, though the math section on the exam had been harder than he had expected. He shrugged to himself. While the written exam was important, he still had another portion to do before the day was out. The practical. To be honest he was pretty stressed about it, but he knew that he needed his energy so he pushed past his lack of appetite and continued eating his lunch alone, fiddling with a drawing of what he wanted his hero costume to be. He had designed it years ago, and recently his mother had bought him the base jumpsuit as a gift, saying that she had no doubt he was going to have a great costume. Hopefully he would pass so he could actually use it.

He had decided that day, like many other days back in middle school, that the commotion of the mess hall was far too chaotic for him to handle. The roof on the other hand was much calmer.

BANG!

Or rather, had been calmer.

Bent over and out of breath, a student had just ran onto the roof. After a moment she stretched out and straightened out, letting Izuku get a good look at her. Her bright pink hair was done up in a quick bun of sorts, giving him a clear view of her oddly shaped pupils, which looked almost like a scope sight would.

 _Must be her quirk. Optical quirks can be useful, though are not often seen in heroes. Plus, with what she's wearing, she's probably going for the support course._

She appeared to be wearing a fairly standard uniform, but the jacket had been removed and wrapped around her waist, leaving her in a tank top as well as what appeared to be wielders gloves.

Oh, and her entire left side was covered in what looked like soot.

"Hey there! I'm going to be hiding here, got it! Don't tell anyone!" She announced before he could even hope to question what was going on. Reaching into the bag that he hadn't seen before she pulled out a small sheet of fabric and sat in the corner of the roof.

"Don't worry about me! Pretend like I'm not here, got it? Great. Thanks!" With that she threw the fabric over her head. Izuku was once more confused until a beep sounded from under the sheet and with a ripple it disappeared from sight.

"What?!" He exclaimed, only to be shushed by the now unseen girl. He shook head as he turned back to his lunch, hyper conscious of the girl not 10 feet away from him. The next minute was incredibly awkward as he stared at his food, but before he could process what happened he heard the sound of footsteps. Loud footsteps.

"Where are you!?"

Slamming the door open, one of the largest students Izuku had seen that day burst onto the roof. His size must have had to do with his quirk, because Izuku didn't know people could get that fa– uh– large. With his uniform Izuku could tell that he was an actual UA student, probably a later year who had arrived early to work on a project, if what he was carrying was any indicator. In his hands he held what appeared to be the remains of some sort of generator, around the size of a microwave. Looking around and not seeing the target of his anger he frown and looked over at Izuku.

"You there!" Izuku jumped as the larger boy pointed at him.

"Y-yes?" He stuttered out.

"Have you seen a pink haired chick run by here? She was fiddling with my project, and look what she did! Blew up half the room! How the heck am I supposed to hand this in now?" As he spoke he seemed to get angrier and angrier. Izuku struggled to not glance over to the corner he knew she was hiding in, while internally debating whether or not telling the boy about the girl would be smart. While he didn't think what she had done was nice, the boy looked far too angry to act rationally.

As it was, the boy growled slightly when Izuku failed to answer quickly and took his silence as a negative response.

"Whatever. I'll just tell Power Loader what happened. Stupid wannabes."

With that he was gone, and Izuku was once again left blinking and trying to figure out what had just happened. After another minute had passed by (and no one barged onto the roof), he turned back to his food and his suit diagram.

 _I guess I'll have to be ready for this if I get in. From the stories that I've heard UA can get pretty crazy. Now, I think my suit would benefit from the utility belt, but it can't be too large. I also need to be sure that the suit allows for energy to pass through the palms of the gloves, otherwise I'll destroy it every time I use Discharge. I hope that they can figure all this out. My notes are pretty –_

"Ooooh! Is that a costume?!"

Izuku squealed as a voice came from right beside his right ear, instinctively flickering a few feet to the left away from the intrusion into his personal space. The vanishing girl was now sitting on the bench beside him, though due to his reaction she was a few feet away. His retreat hadn't seemed to affect her though, if anything she seemed even more excited as she saw his quirk.

"U-umm… hi?" Izuku ventured. Ignoring his attempt at a normal conversation the girl leaned forward and snatched his notebook from his grasp, grinning.

"Wow, this is pretty good. Practical! But it looks stupid. Sort of like a rabbit." She announced.

"What?" Izuku asked, staring at her. She gestured to the page.

"I heard you muttering about a costume, so I decided to take a look. Don't worry though! Your lack of fashion is understandable, and I'm sure that I can fix this!" That being said she reached into the bun that her hair was in and pulled out a pencil, and began writing on the page next to his previous drawing. As she was drawing Izuku tried to peek, but she pulled the book away, stating "you can see when I'm finished this masterpiece!"

Resigned to his fate Izuku began finishing off the rest of his meal, asking a few questions as he did, each of which was answered before another was fired back at him.

"So w-what did you do?"

"Fixed his project. I made it 30% smaller, then began scrapping his old junky version! But he interrupted me, so it blew up! He'll find the upgraded model when he gets back to his 'lab' if you can call it that. Why are you on the roof?"

"It's q-quieter up here. Did he ask you to fix it?"

"Nope! Why?" Izuku shook his head.

"Then why were you fixing it? How did you even get into the room?" She shrugged, before beginning to add shading with the pencil.

"I watched him put the code in from across the lawn! My quirk is Zoom, my eyes can zoom in on things from almost 2 km away, so he didn't even notice. Why are you only wearing one glove?"

"I o-o-only could find one! What was that sheet you used earlier?" Izuku answered, hoping to draw attention away from his hand. It worked, as the girl looked up at the mention of the sheet and with a glint in her eyes explained.

"You mean my baby? Baby number 73! Optical Stealth Cloak! It takes constant photos of its surroundings with micro-cameras within the fabric and projects the images on the surface opposite the direction of the camera. I haven't quite managed to fix the disturbance that occurs when you move though, so for now the only way to use it is if you stand perfectly still!" Having explained her 'baby' she turned back to the page before looking up a few seconds later.

"There! All finished!"

As she announced this she dramatically spun the paper towards him, showing off her drawing.

"Introducing Mei Hatsume's improved costume!" Hatsume was her name, Izuku noted.

Izuku looked at the drawing, and was immediately impressed with the detail the picture contained. Though, he supposed with a quirk like Zoom it was pretty easy to see exactly what your pencil was doing. All in all she hadn't changed the design too much (of which Izuku was extremely glad), but even he had to admit it looked much cooler than the costume he had originally designed. A metal face guard would be more practical as well. The darker green she suggested in her notes, besides looking better, would be more efficient if he ever had to do anything that required stealth too.

Sighing, Izuku took the paper before smiling.

"Thanks Hatsume, that's a big improvement from what I originally had! I'll be sure to submit that if I pass!" Hatsume smiled and nodded.

"That's good, cause if you didn't I would have had to be sure to fix it before you got it!" Izuku shook his head at her forwardness. In the background a bell rang out and Izuku took a deep breath. With all the craziness that just happened his focus had swayed from the test, and he smiled as he realized that the stress he had been feeling had dissipated as well.

"W-well, we should get going to the second portions of our exams. Thanks for your h-help with the costume design Hatsume!"

"Wait! I told you my name, so you have to tell me yours. How else am I supposed to keep track of that beautiful costume I just fixed? What if I need to fix it again?" Izuku laughed.

"Izuku M-Midoriya." Hatsume nodded and stuck out her hand.

"Well then Midoriya, I except to see your costume as soon as you get it! Then I can make as many modifications as needed!" Her eyes twinkled as she thought of all the future modifications, while Izuku felt a shiver go down his spine as he shook her hand

 _What have I gotten myself into?_

With that she nodded herself and in a flash was off the roof and running down the stairs, leaving a trail of soot as she ran. Izuku blinked before running after her, realizing he only had 5 minutes to get to the auditorium. Three and a half minutes later he stood panting outside the doors, catching his breath. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts he straightened and walked forwards, intent on opening the door and making his way to his assigned seat.

He did not intend to walk directly into the door as it swung open while someone exited at high speeds. And yet, he let out a yelp as the door slammed into his face he landed on the ground, sparks briefly covering him surprise. Blinking the stars out of his eyes he was dimly aware of a familiar voice asking him if he was okay.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sor– Deku?!" Izuku blinked as he looked up at the worried face of Uraraka.

 _I really don't know if I'm lucky or unfortunate today._ He thought, accepting her hand as she helped him to his feet.

"I'm so sorry Deku, I was sitting in the wrong seat and I only have a few minutes to get to my seat! Good luck on the test! Sorry for knocking you over!" She said quickly, glancing at the clock on the wall. Eyes wide as she saw the thirty seconds she had, she quickly shouted "Good Luck!" and raced for a different entrance.

Meanwhile, Izuku was left red and sputtering as he stared down at his gloved hand, surprised by the tingling feeling that was left where her fingers had touched his own.

"Hey man, you okay?" A boy's voice asked him, and he nodded numbly, letting himself be led into the auditorium and into his seat. The boy who had helped him quirked an eyebrow at his odd behaviour and shook him lightly, successfully snapping him out of his trance.

"O-o-oh! Thanks!" he said, his face still a little red, though this time more from embarrassment.

"No problem! My name's Kirishima! What's yours?" The redhead said with a smile, and Izuku noticed the sharpened teeth that glinted in his mouth.

"I'm I-Izuku Midoriya!" Izuku nearly shouted and stuck his hand out. Kirishima laughed at his volume and shook his hand enthusiastically.

"So Midoriya, why were you all red in the hallway?" As he asked Izuku went red once more before dropping his gaze down to his lap and muttering to himself. Kirishima laughed and clapped him on his back.

"Girls then?" Izuku looked up, opening his mouth to deny it before realizing that's _exactly_ what it was. Kirishima's laughing grew louder as Izuku tried to formulate a response. As he laughed Izuku noticed that it felt… different. Usually when people laughed at him it carried a sense of malevolence. They were laughing AT him. But now, despite Kirishima laughing just as hard, it didn't seem to carry the same hostile intent. It was nice.

Kirishima grinned as his laughter subsided and threw an arm around Izuku.

"I can already tell that we're going to be great friends Midoriya! Let's both pass, alright?" His gleeful grin shifted as he looked around before leaning in conspiratorially, "And if we're in the same class I'll even help you out with your lady problem, got it?"

"Friends? Just like that?" Izuku asked, confusion tinging his tone. Was it really that easy to make friends? Honestly, he hadn't had any real friends, at least not his age, so he didn't have a lot of experience in that regard. His question went unanswered as the lights dimmed, the presentation beginning. As he turned to the front he missed the concerned glance Kirishima sent his way.

As darkness settles around the students, the flash of spotlights filled the room, each one centering on a figure who was now standing on the stage.

"WHAT'S UP UA HOPEFULS! THANKS FOR TUNING IN TODAY TO ME, YOUR RESIDENT DJ! MY NAME IS PRESENT MIC, AND I'M GOING TO BE TAKING YOU THROUGH THE EXAM TODAY! NOW, LETS HEAR SOME EXCITEMENT OUT THERE!"

Silence. Izuku briefly wondered if he should clap, but he knew how weird it would be if he were the only one.

"WELL, THAT WAS ENTHUSIASTIC. FINE THEN, LET'S GET ON TO THE MAIN TUNES COMING YOUR WAY TODAY! THE PRACTICAL EXAM! ALRIGHT! AS YOU ALL READ ON YOUR APPLICATIONS, TODAY YOU KIDS ARE GOING TO BE PARTICIPATING IN SUPER HIP MOCK BATTLES IN URBAN SETTINGS! THESE ARE GOING BE AGAINST MOCK VILLAINS, SO DON'T WORRY ABOUT OHER STUDENTS ATTACKING YOU! ALL OF YOU SHOULD HAVE A TICKET TELLING YOU EXACTLY WHERE THIS JAM SESSION IS GOING TO TAKE PLACE, SO MAKE SURE YOU ALL GET ON THE RIGHT BUS! YOU SHOULD BE SEPARATE FROM ALL YOUR MIDDLE SCHOOL FRIENDS, SO CHANCES OF TEAMING UP ARE SLIM TO NONE, GOT IT? SO, LET'S CHECK OUT WHO'S GOING TO BE IN YOUR 'AUDIENCE' TODAY.

"YOU'VE GOT THREE TYPES OF FOE VILLAINS IN EVERY URBAN CENTER, AND YOU'LL EARN POINT DEPENDING ON WHICH ONES YOU MANAGE TO TAKE DOWN! THE MORE POINTS THEY ARE WORTH THE HARDER IT IS TO BEAT THEM, SO WATCH OUT! YOUR GOAL FOR THIS EXAM IS TO SHRED AS MANY OF THESE VILLAINS AS POSSIBLE BEFORE THE TIME RUNS OUT, AND REMEMBER THAT THOUGH THIS IS A SOLO GIG, WE'RE KEEPING THINGS HEROIC HERE AT UA, SO ATTACKING OTHER STUDENTS IS AGAINST THE RULES!"

As he spoke, Izuku began to mutter to himself.

"Three types of villains means that I'll have to focus on which ones are worth more points. Ten minutes isn't a lot of time, so I'll need to decide right away on which villains are worth the effort. I should probably stick to the two pointers, they should be easy enough to destroy without wasting too much time on them. But there will only be a limited amount of villains, unless they keep releasing them… I suppose it will also depend on the density of villains, as well as whether or not any of them have weak joints that I can take advantage of. I wonder–"

As he muttered he was hardly aware of Kirishima beside him, staring at him with an odd expression. While the muttering itself seemed extremely strange, he couldn't deny that Midoriya was making quite a few good points in how to do this. Looking away he chuckled nervously to himself. He had just been planning on winging it, but this Midoriya guy seemed to prepped and ready. Maybe he should be taking notes…

At this point Present Mic paused and looked towards the group, and amongst the students a single hand was raised in the air. With a gesture one of the spotlights turned to him.

"YESS, THANK YOU FOR CALLING IN STUDENT NUMBER 7111, DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION FOR US TODAY?"

"Yes, in fact I do!" Izuku noted (as he muttered) that the voice matched the one that had called for them to hurry earlier that morning. "On the print out that you have given us you have listed 4 villain types, not three! While I respect this school, I cannot accept that such an error has been made on official UA documents! We are all exemplary students, and therefore expect the best out of this prestigious academy! Furthermore, you in the back!" Kirishima nudged Izuku, who stopped muttering and looked down at the dark blue-haired boy questioningly.

"Yes you! You have been muttering this whole time. Stop. Some of us are trying to pay attention, and your constant stream of words are distracting to those of us trying to focus. If you aren't here to try your best you shouldn't be here at all."

Izuku covered his mouth in an instant and muttered a small sorry, to which the official sounding boy nodded before turning back to the front. Present Mic laughed and pressed a button on his podium, pulling up the final silhouette.

"TODAY IS A DAY OF SURPRISES! THOUGH I WOULDN'T HOLD OUT HOPE EXAMINEE 7111, I'M PRETTY SURE THAT IF MIDORIYA STOPPED MUTTERING WE'D BE FACING THE END OF THE WORLD!" At this Izuku blushed harder, laughing awkwardly as many students looked over to him, shocked at the pro's familiarity with the boy. "NOW, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION! THE FOURTH VILLAIN TYPE IS WORTH 0 POINTS! THAT VILLAIN IS JUST AN OBSTACLE FOR YOU STUDENTS THAT WE'VE ADDED TO THE MIXTAPE! THERE'S ONLY ONE IN EACH AREA, SO TRY YOUR BEST TO AVOID THEM! THEY AREN'T INVINCIBLE, BUT BEING WORTH 0 POINTS MEANS THAT THERE'S REALLY NO POINT IN TRYING!"

The boy who had been standing gave a quick bow.

"Thank you. I am glad it wasn't a mistake. Please continue." He said before sitting down.

"WHILE I WOULD LOVE TO KEEP THIS GOING, MY SOLO IS COMING TO END! THAT'S ALL THE INFO WE'VE GOT FOR YOU KIDS, EXCEPT TO REMIND YOU TO GET ON THE RIGHT BUS AFTER THIS! I THINK I'LL SIGN OFF HERE WITH A LITTLE GIFT! AS GENERAL NAPOLEON BONAPARTE ONCE SAID, A TRUE HERO IS ONE WHO OVERCOMES LIFE'S MISFORTUNES! SO, IN THAT SPIRIT, ARE YOU READY TO GO BEYOND? PLUS ULTRA!"

With that they were off. After a quick goodbye to Kirishima, Izuku quickly got changed into his tracksuit and boarded the proper bus. He sat as far back as he could, scribbling in his notebook. Now that he knew the rules maybe he could plan out a few strategies before they got there. For the rest of the students, all that meant was a quiet muttering from the back of the bus for the next 5 minutes. Soon they had pulled up to the gates of the city structure that they were going to be tested in. As they did Izuku looked out at the massive walls in awe.

He still couldn't believe just how much money UA had. He had been training in a city-like environment all month, and now they just randomly had 6 of them?! He sighed as he wondered just how much each of these cities cost. At this point the students had all vacated the busses, and many of them (along with him) wee stretching and getting ready for the exam to start. Izuku smiled as he stared at the giant gates.

 _I am ready._ He thought to himself, his strategy set. As he looked at the gates a flash of white caught his eye. Standing up near the front of the crowd was the girl he had been (almost literally) running into all day. Ochako Uraraka. Her black and white jacket looked really cool, the little bits of red standing out. He couldn't help but notice that her hair looked rather nice as well…

 _Maybe I should go say hi?_ He asked himself, begging to awkwardly force himself to move towards her. _I mean, we have talked to each other like three times now, right? Or is that two? I didn't talk the first time…_

As he thought about this a large form cut off his view of the girl, and Izuku looked up to stare into the hard blue eyes of the boy who had called him out in the auditorium.

"You there! You are the one that was muttering, yes?" Izuku nodded, eyes wide as he wondered why this boy was talking to him. "My name is Tenya Iida. Were you about to go and distract that girl like you've been distracting the rest of us all day? If you are serious about coming here you need to focus more! This is important you know."

At his words Izuku felt an irrational flash of anger. Almost too fast to catch his body was covered in sparks, which dispersed immediately. His green eyes glowed as a heat built up in chest as he answered, his quirk responding to his feelings.

"T-trust me. I know how important this is. I will p-pass this exam, and I will be a student here." Iida looked at him, noticing for the first time the determination in his eyes, before nodding and taking his place near the gates, reacting to the voice of Present Mic as he began the countdown over the speaker. Izuku went and stood near the front as well, stretching lightly and staring at the crack where the two massive gates met. As soon as they began to open, he would strike.

"GO!" Present Mic yelled, and Izuku stuttered as the hero yelled, "THERE'S NO COUNTDOWNS IN REAL LIFE, GET IN THERE!"

The gates swung open at high speed, and Izuku let the ever-present pull take him as he flickered into the exam, far ahead of even the fastest students.

"Here we go!" He shouted out, charging up Full Cowl and flickering behind the nearest robot, slamming his fist into its head.

The practical exam had begun.

* * *

 **Alright! Another chapter done! Hope you guys liked it! Hopefully with school out for the summer I'll be able to write a bit more, but who knows with life, right?** **Anyways, I cant wait to publish the next chapter, finally Izuku and Ochako have met! The practical exam has started, what will Deku do? How will people react to his abilities? Will I ever be able to update a chapter quickly? Find out this and more next time on The Nexus Hero!**

 **Glitch out!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey everyone! Isn't the summer great? I actually got to write without too much distracting me? And what does that mean? It means you get the longest chapter so far only 2 weeks after the last one! WooHoo! Now, I had a lot fun writing this chapter, so I hope you guys like it too!**

 **The standard disclaimer applies, I don't own BNHA. So without further ado, here we go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

"UGH!" Izuku grunted as another metallic plate crumpled under his fist. The robot, a one-pointer, recoiled from the punch as it spun on its single wheel. Flickering out of the way of its counterattack, Izuku reappeared above the machine and with his next movement the head flew away from the machine. The rest fell to the ground in a heap, and Izuku let loose a big breath.

"That makes… 25?" He asked himself.

It had been 5 minutes since the test had begun. Izuku had taken out his first robot fairly easily, but mere seconds later it had become pretty clear that he wasn't the only one with skill, nor power. Not a moment after he had flickered the blue haired boy, Iida, had slammed into a three-pointer that was a few meters away.

 _So fast…_ Izuku had thought as the boy slammed his foot through the bot. Soon after that other attacks began flying through the air, taking out robots here and there. A free-for-all had broken out, and after 3 separate robots had been destroyed seconds before he could land the final blow he had started applying a new strategy. Instead of focusing on the high density areas where all the students were he set about circling in the lower density areas where fewer students were. As of yet he had only seen one other student, who had destroyed a robot with his… belly laser?... before vanishing.

Izuku stretched out quickly before making his way to the edge of the roof he had just been fighting on. Battling robots was a lot different than training, and the constant flickering in such a small time-frame was taking a lot out of him. A numbness was creeping up his arms, but that may have been the repeated slamming against metal. Full Cowl was holding up well though, so he guessed he couldn't really complain.

 _Obviously I'm not the only one who has trained. The other students have had years of training ahead of me, so I guess it makes sense that they would be excelling._

Shaking his head, Izuku began scanning the area around him. He had found his current enemy on a roof of one of the many buildings. With all the dents that had already covered it, he could guess that someone else had somehow gotten it up here, but hadn't had time to chase after it to destroy it.

His rooftop searching proved successful as a shout got his attention. In the street below another student was struggling with a three-pointer and a three 2 pointers s that had surrounded him, and as he looked closer Izuku recognized the 'Naval Laser" boy that he had seen earlier.

"Hold on!" He yelled as he let Full Cowl power up. A few seconds later he launched himself off the roof, letting himself fall towards the frustrated student. Flickering, he landed on top of one of the robots.

"Get down!" He yelled. As soon as his feet had touched down the robot had begun swinging around wildly, attempting to dislodge him. Pulling his fist back he swung with all his might at one of the leg joints, and watched with satisfaction as it crumpled, causing the robot to fall onto the one adjacent. Jumping from his precarious position on the robot to the ground, Izuku rushed forwards, and with two simple kicks the pair of 2 pointers no longer had heads. Without waiting to admire his work he spun with enough time to see the other boy shoot a beam of energy through the 3-pointer, severing one of its arms. Faced with final 2 pointer Izuku flickered a few feet above it.

"DETROIT SMASH!" He yelled as he fell from his spot in the sky, unable to stop himself from yelling out an attack. With an almighty crash the robot under him crumpled, the force of Full Cowl mixed with his falling speed too much for it. Izuku laughed as he flickered to a standing position, the adrenaline fading. That was three 2 pointers, so now he was up at 31 points.

"Oui! That was indeed spectacular teamwork Monsieur! You must be a fan of All Might, with that yell. I assure you my tummy and I were fine, but merci! Tata now!" Izuku stared after the blonde as he ran away, confusion marking his face.

"Tummy?" His confusion was cast aside as the rumbling of machines from around the corner caught his attention. Powering up once more he rushed around the corner, an announcement of just a few minutes left ringing trough the air as he lunged forwards, slamming into another 3 pointer as it swung its arm at him. Slipping under the swing he let loose a punch at the chest of the machine, flickering away as smoke began to come out of it and it slumped. 34 points!

"THREE MINUTES LEFT KIDS! KEEP IT UP!"

"With only three minutes I should probably make my way back to the main center." Izuku muttered to himself. Taking a second to double check the robot wasn't getting back up, Izuku began to run as fast as he could back to the loudest part of the 'city'. Not 20 seconds later he arrived, and for a moment he could only stare at the absolute carnage before him. The entire area seemed to be littered with destroyed robots.

"That's forty-five!" The boy named Iida said as he slammed into a two-pointer.

"Release!" Called out a familiar voice, and Izuku watched in shock as three robots fell from the sky.

"Wow! I can't believe how cool everyone's quirks are!" Izuku said, a smile on his face for a few moments. That smile vanished though as Iida noticed him and glared. It was obvious what he thought of Izuku's fanboying. Izuku frowned as he searched the area for another robot, zeroing in on a three-pointer that was off to the side and off-balance as the debris from another kid's attack hit it. Forgoing flickering, as his body was starting to ache, he ran over and with a well-placed punch managed to shut it down.

"Thirty-seven." Izuku whispered to himself. "That has to be enough right? There are only a couple minutes left, so I have to hope that…"

Izuku paused a rumbling sound filled the arena.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" A boy screamed as it raced into the square, and Izuku did not blame him in the slightest. Seconds after his entrance an explosion blasted from behind him, and from the smoke emerged the one thing Izuku hadn't seen the entire exam.

"What the heck?!" Izuku blurted out as the massive robot, the Zero Pointer, emerged. It's huge hands grasped at the buildings in front of it, leaving rubble in its wake even as it towered above the course. How had it remained hidden this whole time?

"AHHHH!"

"GET AWAY!"

"HELP! HELP US!"

The screams started as the massive robot began to move towards the square, the rumble now seen to be coming from the giant treads that supported it. Izuku froze as he stared up at it.

 _I guess I underestimated UA again… I know real villains are really powerful, but to put this in our entrance exam!? How could they expect any of us to beat something so… powerful…_

Izuku felt fear grip him, and he stared down at his gloved fist, now clenched painfully tight. Normally, in any other person's case, this wouldn't be strange. However, Izuku knew that he could get away. Even now he could see that the robot was fairly slow, even just at a normal run he could probably escape. However, as he stared up at the robot, an image flashed across his mind.

 _Ruined buildings. A line burnt across a cityscape. His own burnt and broken fist._

Yes, he knew what power was needed to face threats like this. He sighed as he unclenched his fist and turned to run with the rest of the group. He wasn't ready to use that kind of power yet. It still scared him, what he could do. He didn't need to defeat the robot anyways. It was worth zero points right? He didn't have to face that today. As Izuku was turning to run though, a sound caught his attention.

"Ungh" A groan, quiet for sure, but still there. With eyes wide Izuku spun back around. Sure enough, where the rubble from the robots grip on the buildings had landed, a figure was struggling. Izuku couldn't see very well with all the dust, but it looked like their leg was stuck under some of the wreckage. His panic only grew as the rumbling grew louder and a silhouette of the massive treads became visible in the dust. If left alone, it would run over the figure in just a few moments!

If Izuku had been thinking, he might have considered that there had never been a casualty in a UA entrance exam before, that this was still a school and that despite the feeling of peril none of them had been put in serious danger yet. But Izuku wasn't thinking, not in that moment. As the youth came out of his observations about what was happening, he noticed with a little bit of shock that he was already running towards the struggling figure. Once again his body had moved without thinking, simply reacting to the moment. Determination filled him as he thought back to the last time he had acted like this.

 _I am stronger now! I understand myself and my quirk better, and I know how to use the power I can use!_

With this in mind Izuku reached for his quirk, joy and power filling him as Full Cowl covered him in arcs of lightning. As he did though, he was unaware of a passing student's gaze. In the half second that they passed each other, Tenya Iida frowned.

 _Why is he running_ towards _the danger? What is there to gain?_

His thoughts went unnoticed by Izuku, as the boy judged the distance remaining. There was no way he could make it in time without flickering! Reaching for his power Izuku felt the familiar tug and instantly vanished, reappearing by over by the figure in a flash of sparks. As he landed he instantly began looking around to see what the issue was, but before he could do much a cough forced itself out of his mouth, and a splatter of blood followed. Swaying instantly, Izuku felt a sudden bout of dizziness.

 _CRAP! Throughout my training we always stopped when my chest started to hurt! I was so focused on controlling One for All that I didn't try to extend how OFTEN I could flicker!_

"Deku?" a quiet, yet shocked voice interrupted his thoughts. Shocked, Izuku swung his head away from the rubble and looked at the person underneath.

"O-O-Ochako?!" He managed to stutter out. Said girl looked at him with confusion, and a light blush, but that quickly shifted to panic as the rumbling grew louder. Izuku shook his head, trying to clear himself of the nervousness that was plaguing him. Uraraka could make things float right? Looking at the rubble covering her leg, Izuku nodded to himself.

"C-can you try to make the rubble you're on float?" He asked.

"I've tried!" She responded, "There's too much on top for me to get it off though!" Her voice was strained, and Izuku cringed as he thought about how much pain her ankle must be in. Looking up he saw the robot's massive head begin to angle towards them. They only had a few seconds! Taking a deep breath Izuku pushed One for All into 8%, and with lightning crackling around him he yelled.

"Just do what you can! I'll do the rest!"

Reaching down he saw her touch the cement holding her leg down, and he could practically see her relief as the pressure trapping her ankle was alleviated. The next few seconds passed in a blur as Izuku jumped above her and grabbed the other pieces that were there and threw them off. As he did he heard her grunt, but the concrete wouldn't budge.

"Ugh!" Izuku grunted as he grabbed hold of the slab himself. For a few heart-stopping seconds they struggled, the rumbling getting louder and louder, before finally the slab came loose and Ochako could get her leg free. She hissed as she pulled it out, but she didn't appear to be too hurt. For a moment all was silent, before she laughed.

"Thanks De– DEKU! ABOVE US!" Looking up, Izuku's breath caught as the giant robot stared down at them, all other movement halted. With excruciatingly slow movements it raised a giant fist into the air.

"It… It isn't going to… is it?" Ochako asked. Izuku wanted to reassure her, but as the giant raised its fist higher and higher he knew that they only had moments to act.

Before they were punched. By a giant robot.

 _I never would have thought I would be saying that today..._ Izuku thought, _And this is only the entrance exam. UA is going to kill me…_

"We d-don't have time to run," Izuku said, looking around. The robot would be able to reach them for sure, and Izuku wasn't fast enough to carry her and still make it out in time.

"Then what should we do!?" came the reply, a good deal of panic leaking through. Not that Izuku could blame her. Before he could answer her though, he heard a gasp escape her lips, a sob almost, and felt a similar exhale leave his own as the giant fist began to fall.

"Q-Quick!" Izuku yelled, extending his hand, "Grab on!"

Lunging forwards, favoring her unhurt foot, Ochako grabbed Izuku's hand. Looking up at the fist that was gaining speed, Izuku pushed One for All up to 8%. Looking up at the descending fist, Izuku felt his arm begin to shake as he pushed as much as he could into his arm.

 _More power. I need more power!_

Izuku let out a gasp as he let the gates loose a little more, his entire body quaking as 15% flowed through him. Still, the fist got closer and closer, and Izuku's heart beat faster and faster as he thought of what it would do once it hit. Focussing on what he needed to, Izuku toned out the buzz of activity he knew was happening with the other students. Energy raced up and down his arm, the power of his quirk funnelled into the appendage. However, despite his focus, he couldn't seem to block out the sounds of the girl beside him. Her near sobs were all Izuku could hear as the noise of his surroundings faded away.

 _I can't let this thing hit us! I'm sorry everyone, BUT I CAN'T LEAVE THIS BE!_

With a crack a more lightning burst from his skin, a blast of wind flying out from him as his energy was released. A gasp came from where Ochako was holding on to him as the power surged around them both, never once coming close enough to hit her, even curving around her to reach the ground. Arcs of energy surged around them, slicing into the cement from where they leapt off Izuku, carving random jagged lines before they faded and were replaced. With the surge Izuku yelled out in pain, holding out his quaking arm towards the rapidly approaching fist.

"Hold on tight Ochako!" He yelled, letting go of her hand to support his right arm, which was practically glowing now with all the lightning crackling around it. The hand that was holding his own moved as he felt Ochako shift her grip, hugging his waist tightly as he readied himself.

"HERE IT GOES!" He screamed as the fist came within 30 feet of them, moving incredibly fast. "50% FULL DISCHARGE!"

Izuku thrust his palm forwards, and felt his arm protest as the energy he had collected surged through him, launching out as an emerald bolt of destruction. Air surged out from around them as it launched, and Izuku felt Ochako lift off her feet as she clung to his waist. The fist, which had only been 15 feet away, crumpled as the energy passed directly through, melting through the steel as if it had never existed. Izuku watched as the blinding bolt passed through the arm, launching into the open air at the elbow, before continuing forwards and slamming into the head. Explosion wracked the giant's body as it was ripped apart, the momentum of the head's explosion took the whole body of the Zero Pointer backwards, and with an almighty crash it fell to the ground, dust launching into the air.

Izuku breathed heavily as the dust began to settle, a faint yell of "THIRTY SECONDS!" ringing through the air. He blinked, looking at the destroyed robot, before looking down at the girl at his waist, her tightly closed eyes peeking open. Eyes going wide as she looked around, Izuku coughed, cringing as blood flew out as well.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice a little raspy, and very much out of breath. Ochako nodded, and with a sigh Izuku let his body fall backwards, his sore muscles finally giving out on him. Ochako yelped as she felt his body go limp and she was dragged to the ground with the boy, losing her grip and ending up falling onto her own back beside him. Beside her Izuku looked up to the sky, feeling the pain in his right arm spike as it hit the ground. Another cough escaped his lips, but even as he felt the blood trickling down his cheek he couldn't help the feeling of joy that was in his chest.

"AAAAAAND THAT'S IT FOLKS! TIME'S UP KIDDOS!" Present Mic screamed over the mic.

"We did it." Izuku's voice was low, but the laugh that followed wasn't. After the first chuckle slipped through he found himself unable to contain himself as more chuckles left him, and before long his laugh was filling the air.

* * *

If Ochako was being honest, her day hadn't been going that well. That morning she had woken up in a room unfamiliar to her, alone and more than a little nervous. For the past couple of days she had been staying at her new apartment. A month ago she and her parents had picked it out, with a conditional statement that she could get a refund if she didn't make it into the school. She had moved some of her stuff over, but it was still too empty to feel like home.

Dressed and depressed, Ochako made her way to the school. It all passed in a blur, and a short train ride later she was standing in front of the gates. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes.

 _I NEED to do this. I need to make mom and dad proud, show them what I can do. Don't you worry guys, one day I will take you guys to Hawaii, and more. I promise._

With a new determination she walked forwards, her mind clear.

"HEY, WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? I WAS – Deku?!" A loud and angry voice called out, distracting her as she looked over to see a spikey haired blond yelling at another student. He replied quietly, and soon the volume was back at a normal level. Watching the first boy scowl and move away, she approached, hoping to say something. Her chance came sooner rather than later as the green-haired boy tripped, and she reached forwards to stop him.

As they talked she couldn't help but laugh internally at his stutter. Overall he didn't leave that much of an impression, sorta plain with a simple black school jacket on. She could see a dark green long-sleeved shirt underneath, as well as a single fingerless glove. Nothing too bizarre, but not really standing out either.

 _But, he did look pretty cu– I MEAN INTERESTING– when he got lost in thought… I wonder what he was thinking about?_

Their conversation didn't last very long, but Ochako was pretty surprised to learn that they had already bumped into each other before. Soon she found herself racing away, calling out a farewell to the newly discovered Deku over her shoulder.

The rest of the morning passed by quickly, and she couldn't help but smile as she ate her lunch. The test had been pretty hard, but she was sure she had done a good job. Besides, she thought as she ate, there was no point in worrying now! Right now she had to focus on the practical. Despite her thoughts though, she couldn't help let her eyes roam as she sat in the cafeteria, searching for something.

 _Or someone_. Her brain helpfully supplied. She blushed as she thought of Deku once more, but shook her head. Now was not the time to be thinking of stuff like that. She had to focus! And anyways, it didn't really matter, cause she couldn't see him in the cafeteria. Soon she was sitting down for the practical, nearly shaking with nerves.

"Hey! How's it going?" A chipper voice asked. Turning, Ochako smiled as her neighbor sat down in his seat, lounging a bit as he smiled back with wicked sharp teeth.

"Hi, I'm Kirishima. And you are?" Ochako smiled and shook his outstretched hand.

"Uraraka!" Kirishima smiled and gestured out to the crowd.

"There's a lot of us huh? I wonder what kind of test they are going to have for so many people?"

"I don't know, but I hope it isn't too difficult. But I guess that's not really that realistic is it? This isn't the top hero school for nothing!"

"Ya, no kidding! I can't wait! Though next time they could try and make finding our seats a little easier. I mean, Seat 2317? How was I supposed to find that?" Ochako blinked, before her eyes grew wide.

"2317!? So this is 2318? I thought this was 3218! Oh crap!" Ochako yelled out as she grabbed her bag. "Nice meeting you Kirishima! Good luck!" And with that she ran out the door. If she thought her luck was going to get better she was dead wrong. When a thump reached her ears she realized she had literally ran into the person she (begrudgingly she admitted to herself) had spent a majority of the lunch period thinking about. As he landed on the ground some green sparks flew off his skin. As she ran past she briefly wondered about what the sparks did, but the time left kept her running.

"I'm so sorry Deku, I was sitting in the wrong seat and I only have a few minutes to get to my seat! Good luck on the test! Sorry for knocking you over! Good luck!" She quickly yelled as she ran. Soon she was in her seat, and with just seconds to spare the presentation was started.

 _Not late! That was close_.

The presentation went fairly quickly, with only a few hiccups, like someone muttering softly being called out.

 _I don't envy that person_ , she had thought to herself as she overlooked the papers. None of the robots looked to be too big on the pamphlets, so she didn't think she'd have much problems floating them.

Before she knew it, she was on a bus on her way to one of the testing centers, some headphones in to cancel out the chatter in the bus. As they dismounted she walked over to the entrance and prepared herself. This was it, her chance to become a hero. She couldn't screw this up.

The test started right away, and it only took a few moments for 2 flashes to streak past the rest of the crowd, a green flash destroying one robot as a blue blur slammed into another, the front runners showing themselves right away. After that the test had been mayhem, but she had gotten a fair amount of points. No, the real mayhem didn't come till the end.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

Next thing she knew rubble was falling from the sky, and in a flash of emerald light a concerned boy was standing beside her, spitting blood and helping her struggle free. Deku.

Said boy was now laying on the ground, face up to the sky as the end of the exam was announced. Lying beside him, Ochako pulled herself to a sitting position and looked at the strange boy in a mix of confusion, awe, and shock as he laid back with eyes closed and laughed. It sounded different than the stuttering laughs he had let out while they had talked, more free and… happy. They had seen each other four times now, but this was no longer the shy, timid boy that she had been talking to earlier.

Her eyes roamed his limp form, cringing as she saw his arm. The green jacket of the tracksuit had been burnt away by the energy that had been crackling off his skin. The skin itself looked to be extremely burnt, and (if the odd bruises on it were any indication) the arm was probably broken in a couple places. Her eyes widened as she looked closer, and she had to stop herself from reaching forward to trace the jagged lightning-like scars that traced his upper arm. Tears began to form as she kept looking, until her gaze landed on his upturned palm, where a mess of scar tissue could be seen through the burns, no longer hidden by a glove.

 _This isn't the first time he's done this…_ She thought in shock. Her staring was cut short though, as Deku slowly calmed down and his laughs stopped. He slowly raised himself to a sitting position as well, letting his right arm hang limp. He looked her way and smiled tiredly, before his eyes went wide.

"OH! Are you okay Ochako?!" He asked, looking towards her ankle. Ochako blushed a bit as she was caught staring, but shook her head.

"Nuh-uh. I'm fine over here! Well, beside this ankle. What about you though?!" That looks serious!" Deku looked down at his arm and cringed before half shrugging.

"I-It looks bad, but I've had w-w-worse!" He said, missing Ochako's cringe as he unintentionally confirmed that he had done that before.

"But doesn't it hurt? How can you… how can you laugh when you did that… because of me…" Ochako asked, a slight sob escaping lips as a few tears began forming. Hearing her distress Deku turned towards her and smiled nervously, obviously startled by her rapid shift in mood.

"Y-You're right, it does hurt, but I was able to h-help you wasn't I? And b-besides, isn't this what it means to be a hero? Helping people? I'm really just glad you're okay." He finished with a sheepish grin, and Ochako couldn't help the smile that she gave in return, wiping away the few tears that had fallen and noting the lack of stuttering as he began to talk about heroics.

"So how many p-points did you get?" He asked.

"28 I think. How bout you?

"I'm pretty sure I got 37, I was keeping track pretty closely. I think I heard that serious kid, Iida, say he got 45."

"Forty-five?" Ochako asked weakly. Deku nodded, and she felt a hint of doubt creep in her chest as she looked down. _Is 28 going to be enough?_

"Well well well, look who we have here, all bruised and damaged on the _first day_ ," an elderly voice called out. Ochako looked up, shaking off her doubts, watched as an small nurse walked over and looked down at Deku, clear disappointment written on her face. "I thought you promised that you would stop doing this child? Eri isn't going to be pleased." Deku paled.

"She was watching?"

"Her and Toshinori both." Deku cringed, rubbing the back of his head in a rather endearing way, "But I'm sure they will understand. You always have been reckless." Toshinori? Eri? His family maybe?

In short order the elderly hero, Recovery Girl someone in the now gathering crowd pointed out, had healed them up and began wandering around, fixing what injuries she could. Deku slowly stretched his arm and yawned. Seemingly satisfied he stood, before reaching out to help her, a faint blush creeping up his neck.

"H-H-Here you go O-Och… I MEAN URARAKA! You're ankle m-m-m-must be sore s-still…" He let out, the blush spreading to his cheeks as his stuttering returned in full force. Ochako smiled and accepted his hand and stood up, marvelling at said ankle.

"Wow, Recovery Girl has an amazing quirk! My ankle doesn't hurt at all anymore!" She said. Strangely, Deku failed to answer, staying silent as she moved her ankle around to make sure nothing was hurt. Satisfied, she turned back to Deku, hoping to ask him how Recovery Girl knew him. However, as she turned to talk to him she had to bite back a laugh. Deku's normally pale face was practically glowing red, and little green sparks were leaping from his hair, making it stand on end.

"Deku? What's wrong?" She asked, failing to avoid smiling. He looked sort of cute, all flustered like that. He must be nervous, if the way his hand…

HIS HAND?!

Going as red as the sputtering boy beside her, Ochako immediately let go of Deku's hand, berating herself for forgetting to beforehand.

"Wow, I'm really glad that that test is over, right Deku?" She asked quickly, "Lets head back, we must be heading back to the main building soon! Do you think we'll take the bus? Oh ya, the bus! We should go get a spot!" With that she walked off, trying to cool off as fast as she could. Deku followed her, glancing every direction other than her with his face still blushing like mad. As they walked he would glance down to his hand every once in a while. She wasn't sure (she didn't want him to catch her _staring_ , which she wasn't. Definitely not), but she thought she saw him frown as he glanced at the scars, before going completely red once more.

 _Does he not like his scars? I mean, I wouldn't either, but it doesn't make him any less of a hero to have them. I'm sure that a lot of heroes have scars. Besides, it wasn't too noticeable when I was hol…_

With a start Ochako immediately tried to stop thinking, as her cheeks grew a little warm once more. Moving quickly they arrived at the bus before the huge crowd, many of them openly staring at Deku as they went. Part way towards the muttering started, many of the students whispering as they passed, no doubt talking about the boy that had obliterated the Zero Pointer like it was nothing. She scowled lightly at that, but knew that most of them hadn't seen the injuries he had gotten, and even now he seemed to be covering up the worst of the scars to the best of his abilities.

Deku, on the other hand, didn't seem to be disturbed by the mutterings. Or rather, he didn't seem to notice them, for as they walked he was muttering quietly to himself, a small frown in his face as he spoke. She couldn't quite catch what he was saying, though she did catch the words 'close' and 'touch', so she assumed he was talking about their experience with the giant robot as well.

As they reached the bus they boarded, unaware of one specific gaze that remained on them the entire time. Tenya Iida watched as the two walked onto the bus. Though his gaze was steady his mind was far from it. Did he misunderstand the test? Obviously the Zero-Pointer was more important than he had assumed… Did Midoriya see something that he had missed? He knew that he had gotten more points than the other student, but perhaps… perhaps that hadn't been the true purpose. Midoriya, he had acted when no one else had. Iida had seen him, seen the determination in his eyes. There was no room for hesitation there. He had legitimately thrown himself into danger, risking his score, his future, all to help another.

 _Of course, if this hadn't been a test, if my education wasn't in danger, I would have done the same!_

Or maybe… was that it? Eyes drawn, Tenya boarded the bus and sat in a seat. Maybe he had been too hard on Midoriya. He would have to apologize later, if they both were accepted, for Midoriya had obviously seen the test for what it truly was. Nodding to himself, he straightened. Now, to tell his parents and his older brother how had done!

* * *

"So your quirk lets you float anything? Living and non-living?"

"Ya, pretty much! I can't float just everything though, if it gets too heavy then I get really nauseous. Oh! Same for when I float things for too long! If I'm floating myself it happens faster too."

Ochako smiled as Deku asked question after question. They had been slowly getting to know each other since they had gotten on the bus that afternoon, about a half hour ago. They had talked haltingly for the ride, but after changing back into their uniforms (Deku now without a glove, though he seemed a little too distracted to worry about it), they had begun opening up a little more. It had started with simple questions, things like where they were from and where they went to middle school, but before long they had transitioned to quirks. That, she noted, was something Deku seemed to like. As they had gotten started on the topic, he had apologized immediately after enthusiastically talking about her quirk. Her response had been a small laugh.

"Don't apologize silly! I think it's awesome that you like quirks so much! That's going to be useful as a hero, right?"

After that the questions had been nonstop, both ways. While she thought his quirk, 'Tesseract', sounded amazing, her own quirk was so boring. Or at least that's what she thought. Making things float? It seemed so simple… but when Deku talked about it, staring in wonder as she made a pencil float while they walked towards the front entrance, she couldn't help but imagine it was something special. Speaking of quirks though…

"Say, Deku?"

"Yes, Uraraka?"

"When I was stuck, why didn't you just teleport us out?" Deku sighed and frowned.

"I would have, but my quirk doesn't let me take other people with me when I flicker without d-destroying my body. I've only done it once, and from what I was told I was lucky that I even made it…" Oh.

"I'm sorry!" Ochako said, waving her hands in front of her as he turned to look at her. She hadn't meant to bring up bad memories! He smiled though, which Ochako took as a good sign.

"I-It's okay, I barely r-remember it. And it was worth it, so it all w-worked out in the end! Now I know not do that. Looking back though, I w-wish I had known you could make yourself float, I probably could have gotten you out of the way faster then." Ochako nodded.

"That makes sense! Too bad we didn't get to talk before, right?"

"R-R-Right!" he responded as they walked out of one of the side doors of the building. Deku had seemed to know where he was going, so Ochako had followed his directions up to this point, which had turned out to be perfect as she could see the front gate not too far away, a small crowd of students all exiting the campus from the gates. Before he could say anything else though, a loud shout came from behind them.

"IZU!"

 _Izu?_

Ochako watched as a smile lit up on Deku's face as the name was called out. Unlike the shy smiles she had seen all day, or the carefree one she had seen when they had survived, this smile held what could only be described as joy. Pure happiness. As she turned, Ochako struggled to look away from Deku's radiant smile. The way his eyes seem to twinkle, his lips curved as if he was only a moment away from laughing… shaking her head, Ochako looked to see what could make Deku smile like that.

Running up to them was what Ochako could only describe as cute. Pure, unadulterated cuteness. A small girl, five maybe, was running as fast as she could, yelling out 'IZU!' as she ran. Her white hair contrasted starkly with her red eyes, and a small horn could be seen on her forehead, poking through her hair. She was all wrapped up in an old All Might hoodie, and in her little red shoes (clearly modelled off of Deku's own red footwear) she sprinted all the way to the now kneeling Deku. Leaping the last few feet, she was immediately spun around my the older teen, who laughed.

"Eri! How are you? Were you good this afternoon?"

"Hmmhmm," Eri nodded enthusiastically, "Grandpa Toshi let me watch all of the exams! You were cool Izu, nobody else beat the big robot! You are the very best!" Deku nodded and smiled.

"I told you I'd do great," He replied to the adorable child, setting her down and adopting a thinking pose, "didn't I?" The small child giggled and shook her head.

"No Izu, I said that!" Once again he smiled that full smile and poked the girl in the tummy, making her giggle.

"Oh ya! I guess you were right then." Ochako smiled softly at the interaction. They seemed so at home with each other.

"So Deku, who is this?" She asked. As soon as she spoke, Eri's eyes grew wide and before Ochako's sentence was even complete she was hiding behind the still crouching figure of Deku. Standing, one arm behind his back where Eri grasped it tightly, he answered.

"S-sorry about that Uraraka. Eri is just a little shy around others. I guess she didn't see you."

"Oh, that's okay. Is she your little sister?" Deku looked down at her and shrugged.

"Sort of. Remember that day that we ran into each other?"

"Ya." Ochako HAD been reminded of it just earlier that day, "What about it?"

"Well I ran into Eri after shopping, and helped her get away from some…" He leaned in and whispered, "villains." Eri seemed to whimper and hold onto him tighter, and Ochako felt her heart go out to the child. Sometimes it was easy to forget that even in a world like theirs, full of heroes, that some people still suffered. Deku noticed Eri's whimper and bent down, scooping the small girl into his arms as she burrowed into his chest.

"After we got away I took over responsibility for her. She's a part of the family now."

"So… you're like her dad?" Deku blushed and muttered out a response.

"Ya… something like that." A soft muffled voice coming from the child in his arms distracted them, and Deku looked down at her. "What was that Eri?" The girl raised her head barely, and Ochako had to strain to hear her repeat it.

"Izu always takes care of me." Deku's smile softened.

"I promised, didn't I?" Ochako bit her lip. The little girl was so nervous, but she was obviously important to Deku…

"Hey, Eri?" She said, trying not to startle the young girl. As she spoke Eri burrowed back into Deku's arms, but unlike before she didn't try hiding. "My name is Ochako Uraraka. I wanted to thank you for keeping Deku safe and sound okay? He saved me today, so that makes him my hero too! One day I'll repay the favor, because just like Deku I'm gunna train real hard till I become an amazing hero, alright? I promise I won't hurt you, ever." Eri lifted her eyes, and to Deku's obvious shock she gave a sniffled response.

"I… I watched Izu help you. You're going to be a hero too?" She asked hesitantly. Ochako nodded, smiling brightly.

"Yup! I'm going to grow up and become an amazing hero one day!" Eri looked her over before offering a shy smile.

"I like heroes."

"Me too." Ochako said, looking at the two of them. They may not have looked directly related, but just watching the two of them as Deku let her down and stood beside her it was obvious they were just as much a family as any other.

"So do you guys need to be getting home or anything?" she asked, "It's getting pretty late for Eri to be out, isn't it?" Deku laughed as she finished asking this. "What's so funny?"

"Well, we don't have very far to g-go. W-we actually live on campus right now, a new dorm that they made called H-Heights Alliance."

"Really? They're making UA into a boarding school? Maaan, I bet that's way cheaper than my apartment! Are they nice?"

"Ya, they are pretty cool. I don't think UA is worried about money or anything," he finished with a small laugh. Ochako laughed too, reminded of the massive cities that they had just had their exams in. "You should come over some… time. I-I-I-I could s-s-show y-you around o-o-o-or s-something!" Halfway through his sentence, Deku went red. For a second Ochako wondered why.

 _W-w-wait! Did he just invite me over to his… his… home?_

Eri looked back and forth between the two teens confused.

"Izu? Why are you and Chako so red?"

"NO REASON!" the two yelled together.

Around the corner, an older man sat, laughing to himself. He was proud of his successor, forging friendships so early. He had been planning on congratulating him after the exam, but he honestly hadn't expected the boy to be accompanied by anyone. He wasn't that surprised though, facing something like a giant robot tended to do wonders for accelerating friendships. Danger, shared trauma, that whole thing. Not that they had been in any danger in the first place, or at least real danger. Each of the arenas had a pro on site to handle anything the kids couldn't. Cementoss had just been about to pull the two out of danger, but Izuku had acted first, that idiot, blowing up the entire robot. Though he knew why the kid did it, he couldn't say he was pleased with the way he had hurt himself… again.

"Well at least the kid did it for a girl!" He told himself quietly. "Hope it's worth it for him… then again, Young Midoriya would do that for anyone, so I can't say I'm really shocked."

"Grandpa Toshi?" All Might looked down as Eri tugged at his sleeve. "Izu asked if you could take me home. I told him you were hiding around the corner!" Of course. He probably should have seen that coming. He really didn't want future students seeing him in this form though, even if they wouldn't realize it was him…

"Of course Eri. You go tell him we'll see him at the dorm."

"Okay! Izu!" she yelled, sticking her head around the corner, "Grandpa Toshi says he'll take… me… home." As she finished her voice dropped to near silence, obviously having remembered Uraraka's presence. All Might chuckled as a reply was shouted back.

"Alright young one, let's get you home. How about we make some food for Izuku to celebrate."

"And treats?"

"Yes Eri, we can make some treats too." Did this girl ever have sweet tooth, All Might noted. He would have to ask Midoriya about it that night. Since he was her 'father', it wouldn't do to go against any rules they had set.

As they walked back into the main building, the other pair walked out past the gates. While talking to Eri, Ochako had noticed how late it was getting and she still had to take a train to get back to her apartment. Sad at the thought of saying goodbye so soon, she had reluctantly mentioned her need to leave.

"Grandpa Toshi is hiding," She recalled Eri mumbling quietly. Deku had nodded and asked her if she could ask him to take her home, and that he would be back soon.

"What are you going to do?" She asked, and Deku had immediately blushed.

"I w-w-was just g-going to walk w-with you to the t-t-train station! If you d-don't–"

"No, that'd be fine!" she had answered, way too quickly. Blushing red, she tried again. "I'd like that."

And so now they were walking. Neither of them had said a word in the past few minutes since leaving campus, but Ochako didn't think it was awkward. Or at least, she hoped it wasn't awkward. They had been talking for the last while, so the silence was sort of nice. As they walked farther, Ochako caught a glance of the train station ahead. But, before she could say goodbye there was one thing that was still bugging her.

"Hey Deku?"

"Y-Yes Uraraka?" He answered, glancing her way.

"Why did Eri call you Izu?" Looking sheepish, Deku began rubbing the back of his neck. His face was a little red as he glanced around obviously embarrassed.

"She calls me that because s-she find it easier than my full name."

"Easier than Deku?"

"W-What?! No, Deku's just a nickname." Oh. OH.

Flushing, Ochako looked away. That was embarrassing.

"Oh. I just thought… That blond, spikey haired kid called you Deku, so I thought…" Ugh, she just wanted to float away. He probably thought she was an idiot now.

"Blond spikey… Oh, Kacchan? He's been calling me Deku for years now, ever since we were little kids." His face shifted slightly at that. It wasn't nostalgic, and it wasn't sad, but Ochako would have guessed that it fell somewhere between those two. Shaking his head, he turned to look at her.

"I g-guess I should a-a-actually introduce myself then. My name is Izuku Midoriya!" Ochako stared at him for a second. Izuku huh? That would explain 'Izu'. And Midoriya… wait a minute!

"So you were the one muttering during the presentation?!"

"Y-y-ya, that was me." He said sheepishly. "I… I do that sometimes."

"That's okay! Everyone has their quirks, you know?" Deku… Izuku, looked at her before snorting lightly.

"That was pretty terrible."

"You don't like my puns?" She asked, sounding hurt, "I thought it was pretty punny! It's not like hearing them is a punishment!"

That was it for Izuku as he let out a laugh, followed by Ochako giggling a bit. After a few moments the laughs subsided, and Ochako took the opportunity to ask another question.

"So, if your name is Izuku, why is your nickname Deku?" She cringed as she saw the joy fade from Izuku's eyes a little. His gaze fell to the ground in front of them, watching their footsteps. She almost thought he wasn't going to answer, but as she was about to apologize he spoke.

"Defenceless Izuku."

"What?"

"That's what it means. I… I was a late bloomer with my q-quirk. A lot of people I grew up with still don't know I have one. So when we were little Kacchan came up with that name, Deku, to remind me exactly what I was! It was a long time ago now, but he still calls me it."

"Well that's mean," Ochako said, puffing out her cheeks a little bit. She had thought it had sounded a little cruel when the loud boy had called him that, but then again everything else he said seemed mean too.

"It's a-alright, I've gotten used to it now." Ochako shook her head.

"It's funny, when I hear Deku I don't think of useless." Confused, Izuku looked at her.

"R-Really? W-What do you think of?"

"I think it sounds like someone that does their best! No matter what! Besides," she felt her cheeks flame lightly as she continued, "It was Deku who saved me today, and he wasn't defenceless at all." Still blushing, Ochako fixated her gaze on her shoes. Why did she have to say that?! Now he probably thought she was weird, or too invasive! Had she ruined their friendship already?

"Thank you." Ochako looked up quickly, surprised. Izuku was blushing too, but his eyes looked directly into hers as he continued, "That m-m-means a lot to me Uraraka."

"Ochako." She blurted out.

"What?" The confused face was back, and Ochako bit back a giggle.

"You called me that before, and… I don't mind if you call me Ochako," she replied, blushing.

"O-o-oh! O-o-okay! You c-can call me I-Izuku then! Or, Deku if you really want to, I don't mind."

"Izuku is good to me! But don't forget, Deku saved me, so I don't want to hear anymore sad talk about him alright." Her smiled seemed to be infectious, as when she glanced over at him, Izuku was now smiling as well.

 _Izuku. I like it._

They were interrupted as a chime went off above, at the station, calling out Ochako's train. Looking over at Izuku, Ochako took a breath. She'd never done this before, but there was something about Izuku… something different.

"Here! My phone. Put your number in and I'll call you later, 'kay? We can let each other know when we get our letters!"

Izuku's entire body seemed to freeze for a moment, before he stiffly nodded.

"Y-y-y-y-ya, th-that sounds g-g-good t-to me! H-H-Here's mine!"

They quickly exchanged numbers, and Ochako smiled as she looked down at the new contact in her phone. Moving down to the nicknames section she smiled as she typed out 'Deku'.

"Thanks Izuku!" She said, pleased as the boy blushed.

"N-no problem O-O-Ochako." Came the response, eliciting a similar response.

"I'll see you in two weeks?" Ochako asked as she started running for the train. She was cutting it close, but if she hurried she could still make it. Behind her she heard the green haired boy yell out "Y-YA!" as she jumped on, making it only a few moments before the doors slid shut. Looking out the window she saw the boy look down in awe at his phone, smiling widely as he muttered away, and couldn't help the next thought to cross her mind.

 _I can't wait for school to start._

* * *

"I swear, I saw him. He's going to be going to UA. He was talking to some girl on the way to the train, before heading right back!" A man said into his phone. He was still near the school, so he had to be pretty careful. Who knew when a pro could be prowling in this area, plus he had heard that All Might of all people was visiting UA.

"Well, that changes things. If SHE is at UA, then getting her back isn't going to work very well."

"You're telling me. Are you sure you don't want me to try something next time he come out?"

"Like what you fool? He's a teleporter, remember. No, just keep your eyes open, that's what we pay you for. Now, anything else to report?" That man smiled. Yes, his precious eyes. They would ALL remain wide open. There would be no doubt about that. He always watched, when he could. Even sleep didn't dissuade his eyes. Perks to having 8 of them, he supposed.

"Just the normal crap. Petty crime is always there, the hero stops it, yadda yadda. There have been some rumors though…"

"I don't have times for your games Jirako. If you have something to say, say it." Jirako paused. His contact sounded stressed. He imagined the loss of the girl was hitting hard up the food chain. And now that they knew where she was, they also knew they had a fool's chance of getting her back. He wasn't going to push his luck with them, not now.

"Fine, fine. In the darkest parts of the city I've heard rumors of someone returning to Japan. Someone dangerous."

"Who, Jirako?" Wow, he was in a really bad mood. Best get this over with.

"The villain that was behind the massive battle in the Pacific Ocean. The killer of well over 30 pro heroes in that single battle, including Archangel, one of the world's finest…" He paused, hearing the intake of breath from the other side of the line, before finishing.

"Leviathan is coming home."

* * *

 **Another chapter gone! With the test out of the way, will Izuku have gathered enough points to make it through? What of Ochako? Will the two see each other again? All shall be revealed, well, some shall be revealed next time on The Nexus Hero! So until then, Glitch out!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I"M NOT DEAD! Hey everyone, Glitch here. So, I'm super sorry for the lack of chapters over this summer. Turns out, jobs can get really, really busy. But, I'm here now. And for a present I'm gifting you nearly 13,000 words! My longest chapter yet! Honestly I really just didn't know when to end it, so I just kept going. I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter, and as always any feedback is appreciated!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own this, though I wish I did.**

 **And with that, on to the new chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

"Are you ready?" Izuku asked, holding out his weapon. It wasn't much, but against their current enemy, it would be enough.

"Ready!" Eri called out.

"On three… One… Two…" They readied their weapons, prepared to strike down this opponent.

"THREE!" They yelled, swinging upwards. As they did a splatter flew outwards and Izuku cringed as Eri looked up, sadness evident in her face as her strike went farther up than his own, too far. She had failed.

"It's okay Eri, pancakes can be hard." Izuku assured the small girl.

Laughing at the failed pancake now stuck to the ceiling of the kitchen, Izuku flickered over to a footstool and carried it over, intent on removing the half cooked batter. As he did Eri's face shifted from sadness as she began giggling. Izuku smiled again and flipped his own pancake expertly. The first time Eri had seen him do that she had been ecstatic, and Izuku had been forced (though he admitted with Eri it never took much convincing) to teach her his tricks.

Soon they were sitting at the table, pancakes with whipped topping covered in sugary syrup in front of them. Eri squealed in delight as Izuku dropped a few strawberries on top. Normally, this much sugar at breakfast would be a bad thing (especially knowing Eri's sweet tooth), but today was special, today was a day of celebration. Today was an unhealthy breakfast day because a few nights before Izuku had received some special news.

The night had started out ordinarily, but soon after sitting down on the couch, Lilo and Stitch just starting (for the third time that day), the doorbell had rang. Izuku had blearily walked towards the door, Eri yawning as she walked in tow. It had been nearly a week since the entrance exam, and to say Izuku was stressed would be a… " _mild"_ under exaggeration. The same could be said if one were to claim that Aizawa was only a little miffed at the green haired boy.

"I believe I said you had to stop calling out 'smash', didn't I?" He had drawled, looking up from Tales of a Gutsy Ninja long enough to smirk at the struggling boy as Izuku finished his 400th push-up. Normally Izuku would have responded, but having to do drills like this, especially after all his quirk, martial arts, and normal workouts, left him wheezing out what could only barely be taken as an affirmative.

Despite Aizawa's harsher training for a few days, Izuku had gladly thrown himself into his practice every chance he got. It took his mind off things, and by the time he and Eri returned home, they were often too exhausted to focus on the exam results anyways.

Speaking of Eri…

Izuku chuckled as he watched her smiling wide at the pancakes, eyes sparkling and a little bit of drool escaping her mouth at the sight of all the sugar and sweetness in front of her, a feeling of pride welling up in his chest. Eri had been almost as enthusiastic to train as he had. The very fact that she could now somewhat control her power was a testament to that fact. Only two days after the exam, they had been approached by Recovery Girl who had given Eri a special gift. The 'Temporal Energy Limiter' or TEL for short. Apparently, using technology similar to their special beds, it could absorb a certain amount of energy that Eri produced.

"I can train too?" Eri had said, looking at the small device adorning a simple silver bracelet. Izuku had nodded, unsure for a moment before Eri had run forwards and hugged him tightly.

"Next time I'll protect you Izu!" Had been her declaration. All that week her and Aizawa had trained, mainly when All Might and Izuku were practicing. They had managed to get to the point know that Eri could rewind a person 1 second with TEL on. It took all her concentration to do it, and a lot of energy, but Aizawa had assured her it was a big step. She needed to learn to control the power she had access to, that way when they took off the limiter, she would be much farther along. It was odd, seeing Aizawa's strict composure crack slightly with Eri, though it always seemed to be back in place by the time Martial Arts rolled around. Izuku knew he would never (ever) say something to the gruff teacher, his back still ached from the horrible stretches and exercises the teacher had put him through after the exam.

"Strawberries are really good!" Eri exclaimed, making Izuku smile. Once the girl had discovered the fruits she had been practically addicted.

 _At least it's better than candy_. Izuku thought.

As they ate Izuku's mind wandered back to that night; specifically on the interruption that had occurred. When Izuku reached the door he slowly cracked it open to see who it was. However, before he could even say a word the door swung open with great force. Yelping, Izuku instinctively flickered to where Eri stood a few feet behind him, both of them now wide awake as a larger than life figure rushed in.

" **HAHAHA, I AM HERE TO DELIVER A LETTER! HAVE A GOOD NIGHT, YOUNG MIDORIYA, AND YOU TOO ERI! I AM AFRAID I AM FAR TOO BUSY TO BE STAYING, SO HERE I GO, MAKING A HEROIC EXIT!"** With that All Might had tossed a letter at the wide-eyed Izuku before running out the door with the same speed and suddenness that had startled Izuku in the first place.

"Bye… All Might…" Izuku said to the open air, slowly shutting the door. Looking down he felt his heart stop.

TO IZUKU MIDORIYA

U.A. HIGH SCHOOL

ENTRANCE EXAM RESULTS

This… this was it.

"Open it!" Eri had demanded as she saw the words written on the front. Izuku nodded, finding his mouth suddenly dry. Together the two walked over to the table, and with a deep breath Izuku tore the seal. A metallic clink filled the air as a small metal disk fell out of the envelope, rolled across the table, before settling down. The disk flashed once, before opening and projecting an image on top of the table.

" **HELLO AGAIN YOUNG MIDORIYA! I AM HERE AS A PROJECTION NOW!** "

"All Might?" Izuku asked.

"Grandpa Toshi!" Eri squealed.

" **WELL YOUNG MIDORIYA, I GUESS YOU ARE PROBABLY WONDERING WHY I AM HERE! OR RATHER, WHY MY PROJECTION IS HERE, HAHA! I SUPPOSE IT'S NO USE KEEPING A SECRET NOW, AND IT WAS VERY HARD TO KEEP IT A SECRET THIS PAST MONTH, WITH YOU LIVING HERE, BUT THE TRUTH IS I DIDN'T COME TO THIS CITY JUST TO TRAIN YOU! NO, THOUGH I AM GLAD WE HAVE MET, I CAME HERE FOR A DIFFERENT CALLING. YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THE UA FACULTY!** "

"Really? No way!" Izuku exclaimed.

" **YES WAY!** " Izuku sweatdropped. Of course Toshinori would know exactly what his response would be. But still, All Might as a teacher? Possibly his teacher? This was a dream come true!

" **NOW, BEFORE YOU GET ALL FANBOY ON ME, LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR SCORE! AFTER PASSING THE WRITTEN EXAM WITH FLYING COLORS, YOU CAME OUT OF YOUR PRACTICAL WITH A SCORE OF 37 VILLAIN POINTS…** " All Might paused.

" **AND WITH THOSE POINTS YOU PLACED 8TH OVERALL ACROSS THE TEST. CONGRATULATIONS YOUNG MIDORIYA, YOU HAVE PASSED!** " Izuku froze. His excitement grew, but all he could do was stare at the image of All Might, tears forming in his eyes.

"I… I did it…" He whispered. Eri hugged him from the side, chanting "IZU!"

"I made it in!" However, as the smile began to grow on his face, his attention was called back to the screen.

" **NOW I KNOW YOU'RE EXCITED KID, BUT LISTEN UP! WITH YOUR SCORE OF 37 VILLAIN POINTS YOU _WOULD_ HAVE PLACED 8TH OVERALL. HOWEVER, DESPITE COMBAT BEING IMPORTANT TO HEROES, THAT ISN'T THE ONLY THING THAT WE LOOK FOR IN POTENTIAL STUDENTS. MULTIPLE TIMES DURING THE EXAM YOU HELPED OTHER STUDENTS THAT WERE IN TROUBLE, DESPITE THE FACT THAT IT COULD HAVE MEANT LESS POINTS FOR YOU. THIS DESIRE TO HELP WAS ONLY CEMENTED WHEN YOU RISKED YOURSELF TO SAVE THE YOUNG OCHAKO URARAKA. REMEMBER, IZUKU MIDORIYA, THAT NO MATTER WHAT COMES YOUR WAY, _THAT_ DESIRE TO HELP PEOPLE WILL GUIDE YOU IN YOUR PATH FORWARDS. SO, A PANEL OF JUDGES WATCHED THE STUDENTS ACTIONS DURING YOUR EXAMS, AND WITH EVERY HEROIC DEED A STUDENT DID THEY WERE AWARDED RECUE POINTS! **

**"WITH THAT OF THE WAY, I AM PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THAT YOU, IZUKU MIDORIYA, WITH YOUR ACTIONS DURING THE EXAM, SCORED 60 RESCUE POINTS!**

 **"WITH A GRAND TOTAL OF 97 POINTS, YOU ARE THIS YEAR'S NUMBER ONE PLACEHOLDER IN THE HERO ADMISSIONS COURSE! NOW, I HAVE TO GO, APPARENTLY I HAVE… HOW MANY AGAIN? WAIT, THAT MANY?! CRAP. WELL, I HAVE A LOT TO DO TONIGHT! PLUS ULTRA MIDORIYA, SOMETHING YOU SHOULD GET USED TO SAYING, AS I NOW WELCOME YOU INTO THE HERO ACADEMIA. GOOD LUCK YOUNG MAN. NOW HERE I AM, LEAVING THE SCREEN!** " With that the hero rushed out of the shot, and the projection came to a stop.

"You did it Izu!" Came the shout, followed by a crash as Eri launched herself at Izuku. As his shock wore off he smiled and the two laughed. Their enthusiasm continued as they ran to the phone, and soon a crying Inko was joining in the celebrations. However, despite their excitement, soon the tiredness they had felt before the letter had arrived set in once again, and with cheerful smiles the two went off to bed.

Izuku smiled cheerfully. Though it had been a few days, their excitement wasn't diminished that much. Following Eri's example, he took a bite of his pancake and listened as the small girl told him all about what they should do that day.

It was a good day.

* * *

It was a bad day. A very bad day. Aizawa sighed as he looked across the paperwork strewn across his desk. Files mostly, each outlining the profiles of the students he was going to be teaching for the following months.

"Average. Average. Average. Hmmm… hardening? Good score too. Average. Average. Endeavor's kid, huh?" Two hair colors, a scar. A unique appearance to be sure, and to come second in the race for the recommended. But the personality segment… He frowned. All in all his class seemed fairly average, though there was _some_ talent mixed in. He let a smirk rise on his face.

 _I guess we'll see if they have what it takes after the first day._

"Smirking again Aizawa?" A higher pitched voice chimed in. The smirk quickly changed to a scowl as Aizawa looked over to the principal standing in his doorway.

"Nezu. I thought I specifically said _don't_ put these three," he gestured to three files off to the side, "in my class." Nezu smiled as he walked over, plucking the files off the desk as he hopped onto it.

"Katsuki Bakugo, Shoto Todoroki, and my my, Izuku Midoriya? Why not, Eraser Head?" Aizawa glared.

"I already told you. It would be illogical for me to teach Midoriya. He's impulsive, headstrong in some regards, and above all I have already been teaching him. He needs to experience different styles of teaching to excel."

"I understand." Nezu nodded along, putting down the folder for the green haired boy.

"Good. So he'll be in class 1-B then?" Nezu smiled.

"Nope!"

"I thought you said you understand." Aizawa grumbled as he leaned back in his chair. He needed a nap.

"Oh, I understand Aizawa! But I disagree, so what can you do? Teach him, that's what!" Nezu said, his cheerful smile still lighting his face. That stupid, stupid smile.

"Fine. What about the other two? We know that Bakugo and Midoriya don't get along from what Midoriya has said about his past. Having them in the same class? Not to mention his personality segment. He's impulsive, brash, crude, headstrong, rushes into danger at any given opportunity, has no self-control, the list goes on and on."

"Interesting that many of those traits could be said about Midoriya as well, albeit in a different manner." Nezu responded evenly, despite the frustration that he could hear seeping into the other hero's voice, "His combat skill is unmatched Aizawa, but he lacks discipline. Something I am certain you are able to provide! Sekijiro Kan is a great teacher, but he would be too soft on the boy! You though, I doubt you would do that!" Aizawa nodded, then scowled. He knew the principal was smart, but it did get aggravating when he talked circles around them. Made him feel like he was still in school.

"I assume you have a good reason for giving me the angst-filled dichromic time-bomb too?"

"Shoto Todoroki?"

"Yes. With who his father is, and what I've heard about his childhood, he's going to be a hassle in the least." Nezu hopped off the table, laughing as he placed the last file down, back in the original pile with the rest of Aizawa's class.

"Nope! It just felt right." Nezu said while walked towards the door. Aizawa stared after him.

"What?"

"I felt like he would be a good fit! You've already got two of the troubled students, so why not make it an even three!"

"But three isn't–"

"Now hurry up Aizawa, lesson plans are due tonight! The new semester starts soon you know! We should be prepared for our classes, as it is our responsibility to provide them with an education befitting our school's prestigious reputation! I'm off to check in with the rest of the staff! Goodnight Eraser Head!" And with that the small man… mouse… thing left the room. Aizawa looked over to the stack of profiles of the students he would meet the next day. He had already handed in his lesson plans, but he was sure Nezu knew that, the eccentric principal had just needed an excuse. He leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes. Just a little nap wouldn't hurt right?

He had a feeling that he wouldn't have a whole lot of time for naps starting the next day anyways. 'Even three', ya right. This was going to be a mess.

Soon his frustrations faded though, as a blissful sleep arrived, his true preparation for the semester soon to start.

* * *

 ** _You aren't worth it._**

Sadness.

 ** _Useless_.**

Pain.

 ** _Why do you even try?_**

He just wanted to help.

 ** _Useless, useless Izuku._**

But he couldn't.

 ** _Defenceless Izuku!_**

All he could do was fall.

 _ **I know, we'll call him Deku!** _

Falling.

 _ **Good one Bakugo!** _

Until it was too late.

"If you are so ready to die, then maybe you _should_ jump off a roof."

* * *

Izuku's eyes shot open as he flung himself upright, breathing heavily as he grasped at his slightly drenched shirt. Whether it was sweat or tears, he wasn't sure. Moving slowly, as not to wake the small child who was still sleeping soundly, Izuku slipped out of bed. They had gotten Eri her own bed a little while ago, but every couple of nights she would have a nightmare, wake up scared, and slip into his larger bed to comfort herself. It didn't usually matter, but some nights…

"Izu?" came a bleary voice.

 _Useless_.

"Ya Eri?" Izuku answered.

"You okay?" He smiled at the child who was still blinking the tiredness from her eyes. Petting her head softly, he gently nudged her back into bed.

"Everything is okay. I'm just going to get started a little early today." He glanced at the clock. 4:00 am. Not bad really. He usually woke up at 5 anyways in order to get a nice workout in before school, before moving to UA at least.

"Okay." With that the girl fell back asleep.

Three and a half hours later, Izuku still couldn't get the nightmare out of his head. A workout, a shower, breakfast, nothing seemed capable of distracting him. Now he was dressed in his new uniform, his right hand wrapped in bandages, and simply sitting and waiting for their ride. He knew he wasn't useless, he had proven that, but some part of him just couldn't let it go. He had been having these nightmares off and on since the entrance exam a week and a half prior, and he honestly wasn't sure why.

 _Is it because I saw Kacchan?_ Izuku frowned. It was possible. He hadn't really interacted with the explosion teen since… since he got his quirk.

His frown was quickly replaced by a smile as he heard the pitter patter of small feet running down the stairs. He couldn't let Eri see him so upset, not today. Today was both special and terrifying for the smaller child. Today was the day that Izuku finally started school and even though it was just the entrance ceremony and such, it was also the first day since she had met Izuku where she would have to be watched by someone other than her normal guardians. Cementoss had volunteered, as apparently he had a free morning since he didn't have a homeroom to look after that day.

"Ready to go?" he asked. Eri nodded nervously. Smiling brightly, he kneeled down beside the obviously distraught girl.

"Are you okay?" He asked, putting a hand on her shoulder. She nodded again, but Izuku could see her lip trembling.

"Hey, how about a smile?" Izuku showed off his own smile, poking Eri in the stomach a couple of times to elicit a giggle from the girl. His efforts were rewarded, but Eri seemed to be holding onto her sadness despite the smile tugging at her pouting lips. "Do you know who always smiles, no matter what?" This time when Eri nodded it was extremely quick.

"All Might?"

"Yup! All Might. And do you want to know something he told me once?" Another nod, her eyes wide with curiosity. "He once told me 'There's plenty of fear behind that smile, Young Midoriya'. I know you're scared Eri, but to be a hero we have to find a way. Can you do that? Be my hero today?"

Eri looked up at Izuku, and after seeing his smile and nodded. Slowly she followed his example, a small smile adorning her face. Smiling even brighter in response, Izuku picked up his school bag. Cementoss would be by shortly, and then it was off to school for the two of them. He wanted his first day to be special, so he was being dropped off near the front so he could flicker to the other side of the gates. Normally he would walk, but _normally_ he wouldn't be coming in the front gates at all, instead he would simply head over from the dorms.

However, as All Might had said, "You've got to walk in the front gates kid! It's a rite of passage, the first steps on campus. Well, I know you've all already been here, but the first day is special! I can't wait to see you in class, Young Midoriya, so get a good night's sleep. And I'll see you tomorrow Eri." They would be starting Eri's quirk training that day, after classes let out for the afternoon.

"Bye Grandpa Toshi!" she had cheerfully responded.

Izuku's thoughts were broken as the doorbell rang, Cementoss' voice calling out for them. Taking a deep breath, Izuku took Eri's hand and walked forwards. His journey at UA started today!

Hopefully everything went alright.

* * *

"Deku!" A voice called out, loud enough to be heard over the hustle of the many student's entering the school.

Izuku flinched. Already? He had just walked in the entrance! Slowly, Izuku began to turn. As promised, Cementoss had driven him to the edge of the campus, and Izuku had flickered onto the street after saying goodbye to his ward. The walk had been short, and though a couple people had stared when he had appeared out of nowhere, after seeing the UA sigil on his new school jacket they had smiled and waved, obviously guessing that he was a freshman by the way he was excitedly walking towards the front entrance.

Before long he stood at the gates. With a surge of pride, Izuku took a step forward. After a moment to make sure nothing when wrong, he took another, then another, until he was slowly making his way to the main doors. He had thought that nothing could sour the feeling of accomplishment in his chest; at least until his nickname had been called out.

Only, he mused as he fully turned, he couldn't remember it ever being called so… cheerfully.

"Looks like ya made it in! I mean, I know that you did, cause you texted, but like, we're really here!"

Oh. That would be why.

"H-H-HEY OCHAKO!" He yelled, cringing even more as his voice echoed across the pathway. His face was quickly heating up, and the snickers he could hear from some of his new peers weren't helping much.

Ochako on the other hand just smiled, small and sweet Izuku noticed, before laughing.

"Hey to you too Izuku!" While she remained smiling, a faint tinge of red seemed to tinge her cheeks. When he blinked though it disappeared, and any thoughts concerning it were quickly lost as Ochako continued to talk to him.

"So you said that you made it in, but we didn't say what our scores were! I got 89 on the written test." Izuku fell into step beside her as they entered the main hall, following the signs and older students directing them to the small lockers where they put their outdoor gear. It was true that they had texted briefly when they got their results, but the process had been arduous. Izuku had slaved over every text, making sure that it was alright before sending it. He didn't have a lot of practice with texting, let alone texting _girls_ , so the conversation had been rather short yet spread out across the entire night.

"That's a-awesome!" Izuku replied, throwing his jacket into the locker. "I g-got a 97 on mine." Izuku chuckled nervously as Ochako spun around, wide-eyed.

"97!? Deku, that's amazing!" Izuku reached into his new locker, folding his jacket nicely. As he did he felt his confusion rising. Normally, whenever he heard that name… _Deku_ … he felt a pain of some sorts. Not physical, but still hurt. But now…

 _"But don't forget, Deku saved me, so I don't want to hear anymore sad talk about him alright."_

Maybe Deku wasn't so bad when Ochako said it.

As he was fiddling in his locker, Ochako quickly grabbed her bag. Looking over at her nervous friend (she could call him that right? They hadn't known each other for long, but they were friends right?), she frowned. His hand was still covered in bandages, hiding his scars once more. As she walked over to the entrance to the corridors, she sighed. At least it was better than a glove.

Shrugging his bag onto his back, Izuku quickly walked over to where Ochako was waiting. Looking down at his orientation schedule, he frowned. 8:00, arrival. 9:00, homeroom. Those made sense, but the fact that the rest of the day was labelled: ? made him just a little concerned. Then again, this was UA. Nothing was out of the realm of possibilities here. The two of them began their trek to the freshman classrooms, and Izuku smiled as they talked. Ochako mostly talked about how excited her parents had been, and how she was officially all moved into her new apartment while Izuku stayed quiet, content to listen to her speak. Soon however, a pensive look came over her face as she turned to her friend.

"So… you said you got a 97, but what about the practical? I was so excited when All Might appeared! Then the rescue points? It was super cool! I ended up with those 28 villain points by the way, and I even got 45 recue points! That means I got 4th overall!"

"Wow! That's great Ochako!" He smiled. He had known that she was good, but 4th place was pretty amazing!

"Well?"

"Well?" Izuku parroted, confused. Ochako rolled her eyes before gesturing to him, dodging a student with six arms as they ran back towards the lockers.

"What did you get silly?" Izuku blushed.

"Oh, I did alright! I e-ended up with 37 villain points!" Ochako smiled oddly, seemingly confused.

"And rescue points?" She prompted. Izuku sighed lightly.

"Umm…" his voice dropped to nearly a whisper, "60 recue points." Once again Ochako's eyes widened, but this time it was accompanied by a laugh.

"Well of course you got a lot of rescue points! You saved us from that big robot! So you got 97 points overall in this one too then?" She laughed, "I knew you were amazing Deku, but getting the same score is pretty incredible. So, you're…" Izuku nodded.

"Y-Ya, I made the number one spot." Another brilliant smile was sent his way, and Izuku felt his face heat up again. Luckily, as he looked up he saw the Hero Course classrooms for first years approaching. Clearing his throat, he pointed at the doors.

"L-L-Look, the c-classrooms!" He said loudly. Ochako turned away, and Izuku was pretty heard muffled giggles. Even he had to admit (as he cringed), that wasn't his smoothest topic change. As they approached the sign pointing them down their hall, he heard Ochako gasp.

"What is it?" He asked, looking over at her worriedly.

"Izuku, what class are you in?" She said, looking over at the green haired boy before quickly looking down at her schedule.

Looking down at his own schedule he replied, "I-I-I'm in class 1-A." Ochako let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness. I was hoping that we'd be in the same class." Izuku struggled for a moment as she looked over at the sign telling them which way to go. His cheeks warmed, but he found himself replying as she read the sign.

"Y-ya, I was hoping that too." Thus, when they arrived at the massive doors of class 1-A, both were slightly flushed as they stared at the massive doors.

"Are you ready?" Ochako asked nervously. They only had a little time before orientation started now, but Izuku could understand her hesitation. Swallowing his own fear, Izuku nodded.

"Let's go."

Time to join their fellow heroes to be!

"Please, you can't do that! Those desks are UA property, we cannot show disrespect to the faculty of this great school by putting our feet upon them! That is not proper hero behaviour at all, and as such you must stop at once!"

Or time to watch it all go up in flames.

"Oh shove off Four-Eyes! I can sit however I frickin want, and you can't do anything about it! Unless you want to make me of course, but I'll kill you if you try!"

"Threatening a fellow student?!" Izuku watched as Iida, serious as he was during the entrance exam, physically recoiled from the spikey haired blonde sitting in the desk before him. Said blonde merely sneered at the other boy and laughed.

"Hell yeah! I'll kill all of you if you get in my way, got it?" He yelled. Izuku took a deep breath, slightly shocked. Of course they were in the same class. Of course. Though, he noted, these students didn't seem to be like the ones in his middle school, flocking to his every word. Then again these were all capable people who passed the same entrance exam, not the mindless middle schoolers that were at his last school.

"Hey, Midoriya! You made it!" A friendly voice called out from the pair's left, distracting them as the speedster continued trying to reason with the explosion teen. Ochako smiled at the newcomer, recognizing him instantly. Bright red hair and sharp teeth were pretty hard to forget after all.

"Kirishima, right?" She asked. The boy nodded, giving her a thumbs up.

"That's me! Eijiro Kirishima! So," he continued, looking back at Midoriya, "You made it in! You know what that means right?" Ochako chuckled as panic briefly flashed across Deku's face, before he seemed to remember something. What exactly that was escaped her, but it was enough to bring forth a blush. She smiled at the boy as she walked over to introduce herself to some of the other girls who had gathered a bit farther into the classroom. She couldn't help herself from keeping an eye and an ear on Deku though as he continued talking to the redhead.

"Oh y-ya…"

"Well, I guess you don't really need my help," his eyes glanced towards the girls before he smirked, "But I meant it when I said we're gunna be friends, alright?"

"O-Okay. We can be friends!" Ochako stifled a giggle again, waving away the questioning look that Mina (who had pink skin!) sent her way. It was already pretty obvious that Izuku was just a bit flustered, as he had all but shouted his response. Kirishima took it in stride though and extended his hand. After a slight hesitation, Izuku reached outwards and shook it.

"And with that we're friends. A handshake is a manly way to make friends!" Kirishima cheered. "So Midoriya, are you–"

"DEKU?!" A loud voice interrupted. Izuku flinched at the sound, and Ochako spun around at the screaming that was coming from the other side of the room. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?" The blonde haired boy, Kacchan she thought Izuku called him, was marching over to them, fire raging in his eyes. Fire in his eyes, and explosions in his hands (as small explosions literally popped in his palms while he approached). Behind him Iida continued to berate him, now ranting about his carelessness with his quirk. He marched right up into their small group, and Izuku blushed as she felt the entire room's attention shift to the brewing scene, including the group of girls Ochako was with.

"Wonder what that's all about?" Mina muttered conspiratorially, a strange glint in her eyes.

 _Ahhh… she must be one of those 'gossip girls' who love talking about what's going on!_ Ochako thought to herself.

"H-Hey Kacchan…" Izuku stuttered out.

"How the hell did someone like you get in here? There's no way your quirkless butt was able to beat any of those robots! So how did you get in _Deku_?" The brunette frowned as Bakugo sneered at her friend. The way he said that name… It practically oozed contempt. Izuku opened his mouth, apparently undeterred by the brashness of the blonde, but before he could speak Iida responded.

"Quirkless? You must be mistaken, Midoriya has an amazing quirk. In fact, I believe that I should actually apologize to you Midoriya."

"What?! You don't need to do that Iida!" Izuku said, shocked. Iida shook his head.

"But I do! I berated you before and after the test for lacking focus, and yet it was you who destroyed the zero-pointer to save…"

"Uraraka" Izuku said as Iida looked at him questioningly.

"To save Uraraka." Kacchan sputtered, looking over at Iida with a confused sneer at the mention of the zero-pointer. "Evidently, while I was underestimating you; you were able to grasp the true meaning of the test! With all that occurred, I am not surprised it was your name I saw in the number one seat of the exam!"

With that Izuku flinched, and Ochako only questioned it for a second as Kacchan spun around, anger evident in his… well, everything she supposed.

" _YOU?_ You got the number one spot?" He said dangerously, his voice dropping. Izuku was saved from a response once again though, as Iida nodded his head decisively.

"Of course he did! Did you not check the listings? It pays to be studious Bakugo, as understanding the true purpose of our trial lead our peer to success!" Bakugo (Kacchan must be a nickname Ochako noted) scoffed.

"Iida! You have it a-all wrong! I didn't understand anything!" Izuku waved his hands in front of himself, "I was j-just doing what I thought was right! I didn't even think about the exam!" Iida cocked an eyebrow at him.

"So you fought that giant robot, _without_ deducing that the rescue points were in play?" He asked. Izuku nodded, looking relieved that the taller boy had stopped praising him.

"I had no idea! All I knew was that s-someone was in danger and I could help! I couldn't just let Ochako get hurt if I could help her!" Silence reigned for a moment as Izuku got louder. For a moment Iida stared at Izuku, and Ochako noticed something akin to confusion in his gaze, like the green-haired boy was a puzzle. However, the silence was broken by a small snicker as Kirishima looked away smiling, holding in his laugh. Ochako looked at him in confusion, before a sharp nudge rammed into her side lightly. Glancing over at Mina, Ochako was greeted by a sly grin, one that was being mirrored by Kirishima now across the room.

"Ochako, huh?" A blush made its way up her cheeks as Ochako caught on. "First name basis already Uraraka?" Mina teased, giggling as Kirishima whispered something to Izuku before leaning back.

"Yup. We are definitely friends."

"If you just want to make friends, you shouldn't be here." A voice droned out, tired and dull. Eyes wide, Ochako and the others began looking around to find the source of the voice. Izuku though… he recognized that voice all too well. Spinning around to face the open door, he felt his gaze drop down to the floor.

Sure enough, surrounded by the yellow sleeping bag he brought everywhere, was the last person Izuku wanted to disobey.

"Get to your seats, class is starting." Aizawa yawned. Izuku jumped, and in a moment was moving as quickly as he could without his quirk. The rest of class followed suit, though at a much more sedate pace as their new teacher slowly removed himself from the sleeping bag and walked up to the front of the class. For a moment he looked over at them taking in each face. Twenty seats, twenty students. He nodded. At least they were all there. But…

"Seventeen seconds… That's how long it took you all to get into your seats. That's too long. If this was emergency, half of you wouldn't have reacted quick enough to save anyone. The rest of you could have been injured, or in other words, useless." Izuku gulped as Aizawa's eyes flashed red, his glare intimidating as he looked over the students. A shiver went down the spines of the class as a whole, with only two students meeting the glare head on. This was a very different teacher than they had thought he was after his entrance. After a few moments he blinked, and the spell he had seemingly cast over the students was lifted as he stood up, his voice falling back into the monotone drone of before.

"Get your track suits on. You can find them off to your left, the numbers match your seat number. Your map of campus should show you where the changing rooms and Gym Gamma are. We'll meet out there in twenty minutes." With that he turned and began walking towards the door. Ochako looked around worriedly, some of her concern fading as she noticed that everyone else seemed just as confused as she was.

Well, everyone except Deku, who had already packed all his stuff into his bag and was already grabbing his track suit out of the opening in the wall labelled 18.

"Wait sir! Doesn't orientation start soon?" Mina called out. Aizawa stopped, his hand stopping just before the handle of the door. Looking back he sighed.

"So illogical... I am the teacher Miss Ashido. I know when orientation is. However, that doesn't change my instructions. Outside, fifteen minutes. Now, if you-" His sentence was cut off as the door slid quickly, slamming open as a large form moved through it.

"I'm done! Aizawa, you can take her. I simply cannot get any work done with her 'resetting' me every twenty seconds. I just can't take it anymore. Take her back." The form said. Ochako's brows furrowed as she tried to make sense of his rant, but as she looked over a small form looking at the ground timidly became visible for just a moment hiding behind the larger figure.

"Cementoss…"

"No Eraser Head, she's yours again." Cementoss said, turning and walking leaving the class confused as they stared at the small child now standing in front of them. The teacher sighed again, glancing down at the child with a half-hearted glare.

"Eri?" Ochako said. As the words left her lips she watched as Izuku spun from his spot halfway across the room. Eri, seeing him, moved quickly yet timidly under the stares of the class until she was clinging to Izuku.

"As I was saying, you have 15 minutes to get ready, starting from when I leave the room to get down there."

"WHAT?!" The class called out.

"But sir! Who is that child?" Iida asked, his hand raised high.

"That doesn't matter. What does matter is what I'm going to make you do if you're even a second late. Fifteen minutes. I suggest you hurry."

A moment later and he was out of the room. Ochako slowly approached Izuku, who was talking quietly with Eri.

"Deku?" She asked softly, remembering Eri's reaction last time they had met to a stranger. Izuku turned and smiled at her.

"H-hey Ochako!"

"What's Eri doing here?" She asked, smiling down at the small girl. Izuku sighed as Eri looked down sheepishly, scuffing her bright red shoes on the ground.

"Well, it looks like Eri wanted to be with us today. Though, Eri, resetting Mr. Cementoss wasn't really what I meant when I said to find a way."

"Sorry Izu," Eri mumbled. Ochako smiled as Izuku dropped down to a knee and gave the girl a short hug.

"It's okay Eri, but after school we're going to go to apologize to Cementoss alright?" The small girl nodded quickly, and Izuku looked over at the clock. "Alright, we've only got 13 minutes left! Have you g-got your track clothes yet Ochako?"

"Yup!"

"Then let's hurry!" Ochako smiled as they literally ran out of the classroom. Before they could get far Kirishima called out to wait up, catching up to them quickly. Eri shied away from the boisterous youth and as he slung an arm around Izuku's shoulder Ochako found herself being used as a shield, the small girl finding a way to be as far from Kirishima as possible.

"I can't wait to see everyone's quirks. Everyone looks so cool too!" Kirishima said as they approached the changing rooms, "Well, at least I'll get to see it soon! See you out there Uraraka!" She responded with a thumbs up and after returning it he walked into the boy's change room. As he left their sight Eri's grip on her school jacket lightened.

"Eri, you can't come in here alright?" The grip tightened as Eri made a small sound. Izuku cringed at the terrified peep, but shook his head as she asked if she could this one time. His eyes then looked up, and he sent a pleading look at Ochako.

One look at the pleading on Izuku's face was all she needed to nod.

"Hey Eri! How about you come with me? I'll get changed super-fast, then we can see Izu outside!" Eri looked between the two of them for a moment, then turned to the gravity user.

"Really fast?"

"Really really fast." Ochako assured her. Taking a deep breath Eri nodded.

"Okay." She quietly replied, still looking a bit frightened. Reaching out, Ochako took the girl's hand and began walking into the change room, with the rest of the class approaching from behind them. Likewise, Izuku ran into the boy's room. Ochako giggled as she heard a bang come from the other entranceway as Izuku apparently walked into the doorframe (or at least that's what he was muttering about afterwards).

Eri stuck with Ochako for the entire time she changed, hiding behind her when the other's entered. Luckily none of them approached, and so she could quickly get her track stuff on and get out the door. Soon the all of the girls were changed and walking towards the group of boys that had already gathered out on the field, Eri walking hand in hand with Ochako, much more comfortable with the older girl since nothing had happened in the changing room.

"So, what's with the kid?" A voice rang out. Ochako smiled at the curious pink-skinned teen as she walked up beside her.

"Her name is Eri."

"Aaaand?" She made a motion for Ochako to continue.

"Ya! Tell us about her!" Came another cry, this one from a girl who was startlingly invisible. Her track suit wasn't though, so it was pretty easy to see that she was skipping along with them.

"You have to admit, it is odd that she is allowed to come with us, ribbit. By the way, I'm Tsu Asui, but you can call me Tsu." Her frog-like classmate said. Eri let out another eep as the students came up on both their sides. Ochako felt her grip tighten and squeezed reassuringly.

"And what's she got to do with Midoriya?" Mina asked, "Like, they are so adorable! Speaking of Midoriya…" Ochako felt herself flush as Mina looked at her.

"Oh would you look at that! We're here!" Ochako announced loudly, blushing as Mina laughed. With the small break her announcement caused, Ochako took the opportunity to glance around at the boys. Most of them were socializing fairly well, though one boy with white and red hair was standing off on his own. Izuku was talking, or at least stuttering, with both Iida and Kirishima while Bakugo sat and glared at their small group with a snarl on his face. Meeting her gaze, Kirishima smiled and nudged Izuku, who had only just turned when Eri tugged away from the gravity user and launched herself at him with a cry of "Izu!", which of course brought a chorus of awws from the girls watching.

"I told you they'd be out soon! You need to relax Midoriya!" He said as Izuku sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"I know, b-but I was just–"

"Worried, we know," Kirishima laughed. Iida nodded from beside him.

"Indeed, you have been noticeably stressed since the girl left your sight."

"And not just the one girl either." Kirishima smirked, wiggling his eyebrows at Izuku, soliciting a blush as Iida looked confused. Before either could comment though the familiar drone of their teacher filled the air.

"14 minutes, 14 seconds. Acceptable, but cutting it close. Next time try to cut that down to under 14 minutes flat. Now, onto our activity." At this the entire class watched with baited breath as he looked them all over.

"All throughout your lives you have done physical tests at school. The one rule you've had to follow has been no quirks, as these give you unfair advantages over others your age." Aizawa sighed, "That is so utterly illogical, I would even go as far to call it idiotic. Your quirks make you who you are, they play a major role in what you become. You won't find that here at UA. So today we're starting with a Quirk Apprehension Examination to see where you currently stand. This will be just like the many exams you have had in the past, but this time I expect you to all use your quirks to their fullest. I want your best, anything less and you'll regret it. Bakugo!"

"What?" The teen replied, matching the teacher's glare.

"Come here." As the blonde approached, Aizawa took out a ball.

"How far could you throw a ball in middle school?"

"Sixty meters?" The blonde shrugged, taking his best guess.

"Why don't you try with your quirk this time?" Aizawa said, handing the ball to Bakugo and gesturing towards a circle made of chalk on the ground. Flashing a terrifying grin, Bakugo nodded. As he entered the ring he stretched his arms briefly, before winding up.

"DIE!"

 _Die?_ The class thought together. The strange cry did little to inhibit their awe though, as the explosion tossed the ball into the distance. Aizawa looked down at the small device he was carrying before turning back to the group.

"There's no point in knowing what you can do if you don't test all of your strengths, your quirks included. Know your own foundation first. That," he said, showing the flashing 705.2 meters to the class, "is the most rational way to start your journey to become heroes." As he finished the class broke into conversation.

"700 meters!?"

"That's insane"

"We can use our quirks?"

"I see, this seems to be so our teacher can see where we need to improve!"

"Finally, a chance to kill all you nerds! Bring on the next challenge!"

"A test with our quirks?! This is going to be so much fun!"

As the last comment was made Aizawa smirked.

 _And there it is_. He thought to himself.

"Fun huh?" His smirk turned into a glare as he looked over at Mina, who was now cringing. "We aren't here to have fun. UA is a school for heroes, and heroics are _not a game_. So if you think this is going to be fun, how about I show you just how serious this is going to be. After each physical test you will be ranked. At the end I will average out the rankings, and whoever ends up last _is expelled_."

Gasps filled the air as everyone went silent. Mina, wide-eyed, voiced what everyone was thinking.

"You can do that?!"

"UA isn't like other schools. Teachers here are responsible for everything in their own curriculums, including what to teach, when to teach it, and more importantly who to teach it to." Aizawa looked over the group once more, noting the fear in their eyes. That was good. Time to see who was really cut out for heroics. Clearing his throat, he smiled at the group. Based on their reactions, it was hardly comforting.

"I would prepare yourself. Depending on your performance, this could be your first and last class as a hero." His eyes flashed red. "I hope you have _fun_."

* * *

"This is… impossible." Ochako wheezed out. Beside her Mina huffed in agreement. Had it really only been a couple of hours since they had all been chatting in a classroom excitedly?

"I know right?" Kirishima called over from where he was sitting. They had already done a variety of activities, and almost all the students were feeling pretty beaten at this point. They only had a few tests left, but in order to move on they needed to finish the current one. Or at least wait until some people finished.

"I can't believe they're still running." Another voice chimed in, Jiro sitting down next to them. Ochako nodded her head in agreement. While she had known that endurance was going to be tough, she hadn't realized just how far ahead a few of her classmates were. They had started the endurance run almost 40 minutes ago, and a few of the students were still going strong. She sighed, leaning back on the bench. Next to her Eri sat, swinging her legs as she watched the last few students run in circles.

"Ya, who knew Midoriya could run like that?" Mina said, "I mean, he looks sorta scrawny to me."

"You're right, he doesn't look super well built." Jiro nodded. Ochako frowned as the girls looked over at the boy, his breath uneven as he ran beside Todoroki. Besides the two of them, the only ones that were left were Bakugo (who looked like he was running JUST to spite Izuku) and Iida, who was obviously the most used to this kind of exercise.

"Deku has muscles!" She replied to the girls, "It's just hard to see them when his track shirt is on!" Her mind flashed to the moment before the giant robot had fallen. As she had held onto him it had been extremely obvious that the boy was far more in shape than could be guessed by his appearance.

"So you've seen him without his track shirt on then?" Mina said slyly. Ochako turned quickly, shaking her head and waving her arms.

"No! I haven't! I just noticed when I was holding him! I MEAN, WHEN HE WAS SAVING ME I HAD TO HOLD ON! THAT'S ALL!" She said. Her yelling caused a few eyes to turn their way, but she was saved by Aizawa calling the runners in, all of whom collapsed as they stopped moving. She wasn't saved the humiliation of Kirishima fist-bumping Mina though, as they giggle at her beet-red face.

"Alright, we have seen that you can run. You can stop now. There's only one event left, after which I'll reveal your scores and you can be on your way." Ochako sighed in relief. They were so close! After Bakugo's demonstration they had started with a 50 meter dash. The results were varied, but at the end three students took the lead. Bakugo and Iida were close, Bakugo's 4.13 seconds losing to Iida's 3.04 seconds. But the real winner had been Deku. As he had went to start, most people were speculating how he would do, as well as how Kaminari would do. The overall speculation would be that Denki looked far more intimidating as he prepared to run, with electricity flashing in his feet. When they turned to ask Ochako's opinion though she just shook her head.

"Deku is going to win for sure." She said, with Iida supporting her deduction loudly. The others shrugged and turned back to the race.

When Izuku's time came in at 0.4 seconds (teleporting was way too fast) they had booth been assaulted with "that's not fair!" from Kirishima and Mina, both of whom claimed they had cheated by knowing Izuku's quirk. Unfortunately, their reaction wasn't heard as Bakugo had torn across the field, demanding to know about Izuku's ability, or rather his supposed lack of one. Not a moment too soon a grey cloth struck the speeding boy and wrapped around him, and Aizawa walked up to them, telling them to save any squabbles for after school. After Aizawa had stopped him though, revealing his identity as a pro to anyone who hadn't known, Bakugo had resorted to glaring at the green haired youth.

Which he continued to do for every single event afterwards.

Izuku sighed as he walked along with the group, Eri hugging him as she walked happily beside him. He was honestly quite surprised that she was so relaxed, but he supposed that with none of the students being too forward she felt somewhat safe. Unfortunately one of the students, Tokoyami was his name he thought, had a rather shocking visage. Normally it wouldn't be much of a problem, but even he was thrown off a bit by the bird-like head. The memories of the night he saved Eri flashed before him, focussing on the beak mask that the man, 'Overhaul' as the teachers referred to him, flashed through his mind. Obviously Eri had similar thoughts, as every time he approached she would hide behind Izuku. Even as they walked she was making sure to keep Izuku between them. Shaking his head he looked towards his classmates, who were lining up and throwing the ball. Off to the side Bakugo sulked, his gaze focussed on Izuku. Said boy gulped. This was going to be a nightmare…

His attention turned back to the class. Most of the students were done by now, but there were still a few more people left before he had to go.

"Oh wow!"

"Good job Uraraka!"

"Makes sense, with her quirk!"

 _Ochako?_ Izuku looked over to the teacher, where he displayed her score. Izuku stared for a second before laughing. Of course it was infinity. It would only make sense with her quirk.

Ochako smiled as the class congratulated her, not used to such enthusiasm but pleased with her score. Finally, she had a chance to show off her quirk! However, despite the praise coming from those around her, a single laugh rang out above their voices that seemed far more clear. Behind the group Izuku was standing with Eri, a smile on his face as he gave her a thumbs up. Blushing slightly, Ochako returned it. Her smile didn't last though, as Aizawa glared at them.

"Alright, last up. Midoriya, get up here."

"Y-Yes sir!" The class stepped back from the grumpy teacher.

"He's intense." Kirishima noted. The people around him nodded.

Izuku walked up to the circle and grabbed the ball. Looking down at it he smiled. How long ago was it that he would have faced this kind of test in fear? Even after Tesseract had manifested he had never been able to truly show off. Today though, he had been an equal with his classmates for the first time. It was liberating, yet also strange. He had started off strong with the 50m dash, but after that he had ended up in the middle of the pack. He wasn't as strong as some, couldn't bounce back and forth as fast as others, but no matter what the challenge he had come out fairly victorious.

"Any day now Midoriya…"

"O-O-Oh! S-Sorry!" Izuku yelled back at his teacher. As he responded though, a loud obnoxious laugh came from the group, one that Izuku had heard many, many times. And it was ALWAYS followed by _those_ words. His head dropped as they reverberated through his mind.

 _Useless Deku._

He frowned.

The class watched as their classmate walked up to the ring with varying emotions. They had all seen that Midoriya was capable, and yet besides that skill he still seemed so nervous. How someone could go from outpacing almost everyone in a run to stuttering at every bit of praise was beyond some of them. One in particular couldn't help but glare harder as the boy picked up the ball. Bakugo could not believe that Deku of all people was matching him, even beating him in some of the challenges! He was supposed to be useless. This was all wrong!

In a way it was comforting for him when his classmate got lost in thought, Deku's annoying muttering filling the air until the teacher snapped him out of it. Bakugo laughed as the idiot stuttered away.

His laugh was interrupted though, when a burst of light crackled off the boy standing in front of them. The class gasped as Midoriya was covered in emerald lightning, the energy sparking constantly around him. Up to this point they had all seen the sparks, but only two had seen the full force of Full Cowl before. As Izuku raised his head, Bakugo frowned at the steely look he had in his eyes. It wasn't directed anywhere and it didn't seem to carry any anger, but Bakugo had never seen those green eyes carry anything other than hopelessness. Seeing determination in its place was almost disconcerting…

Winding up, Midoriya felt his quirk respond to his desires. Taking a deep breath, tensing his muscles, and… RELEASE!

With a blast of air pressure and the crack of lightning, the class watched as the ball was sent flying into the distance. Izuku himself though cringed as he felt something wrench inside him and a small cough escaped his lips. He had been using Tesseract a lot this afternoon… and that last use had definitely been beyond his safety buffer of 5%. As he had shown, he could use more without killing himself, but anything above 5% definitely left a mark.

"Wow." Izuku didn't hear who said it, but he couldn't help the pride as he looked at his score. 710.3 meters.

"LET ME GO AGAIN!"

"No Bakugo, you already did it." Aizawa sighed.

"I CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT! IF DEKU CAN DO IT SO CAN I!" Bakugo yelled, somehow getting louder. Rolling his eyes, Aizawa shrugged.

"Fine, go ahead. It doesn't count though. I'll be back in a few minutes with the results. Don't leave." He finished his statement with a glare before entering one of the closer buildings. Bakugo scowled and stepped past Izuku as he walked back from the group. As the green haired boy reached the rest of the group, Kirishima threw an arm around his shoulder.

"Wow Midoriya! I knew you were pretty cool, but that was pretty manly!"

"T-Thanks Kirishima!" Izuku responded, blushing at the praise.

"You are definitely talented." Iida said, stepping up to them. Behind him Ochako and Eri were also approaching, Eri smiling brightly.

Opening his mouth to protest Iida's praise, Izuku cringed as another pull came from his chest. Words escaped him as the taste of iron tinged his mouth, and a cough escaped his lips.

"Deku! You're bleeding!" Ochako called out, rushing the last few meters. Indeed, a small flow of blood was now leaking from his mouth. He pursed his lips at the all too familiar taste.

"Wow man, are you okay!" Kirishima held him up as his head began to spin.

"Do you need medical attention?" Came a new voice. Walking up, once of their classmates pulled a bandage out of their arm. In the background the scream of "DIE!" echoed once more.

"No, that's okay." Izuku assured them, "This just happens sometimes when I overuse my quirk."

"That make sense," Ochako nodded, "I get nauseous if I use my quirk too much."

"Well if you're feeling ill you should take a break," the newcomer, Momo Yaoyorozu, said. Izuku nodded.

"HA! EAT THAT DEKU! 711 METERS! TAKE THAT YOU DAMN NERD!" The girl in front of them rolled her eyes at the boy's screaming.

"That boy is a menace, and it hasn't even been a full day of classes." She said. The others' response was cut short though as Aizawa exited the building and walked over. The class quieted down immediately and looked over at him. He let his gaze look over the students, watching them fret over who among them would not return the following day.

"Alright everyone, here are your results."

With the press of a button a hologram appeared beside the teacher, and each student immediately searched for their own names. He made note of a few reactions, particularly of the people he had already been watching. Midoriya, Bakugo, and Todoroki.

Izuku held his breath as he looked up at the screen. His breath wasn't held for very long though, as he found himself. Rank 4 - Izuku Midoriya. He let out a sigh of relief. His own name found, he looked to see the rest of the names.

Rank 1 – Momo Yaoyorozu

Rank 2 – Shoto Todoroki

Rank 3 – Katsuki Bakugo

Rank 4 – Izuku Midoriya

Rank 5 – Tenya Iida

Rank 6 – Fumikage Tokoyami

Rank 7 – Mezo Shoji

Rank 8 – Mashirao Ojiro

Rank 9 – Eijiro Kirishima

Rank 10 – Mina Ashido

Rank 11 – Ochako Uraraka

Rank 12 – Koji Koda

Rank 13 – Rikido Sato

Rank 14 – Tsuyu Asui

Rank 15 – Yuga Aoyama

Rank 16 – Hanta Sero

Rank 17 – Denki Kaminari

Rank 18 – Kyoka Jiro

Rank 19 – Toru Hagakure

Rank 20 – Minoru Mineta

Subsequent breaths escaped Izuku's lips as he read a few of the names. Ochako, Iida, and Kirishima are all present. As he turned to congratulate them, another gaze met his. Bakugo, upon reading his name above Deku's, was now glaring at said boy with a glint in his eyes and a smirk on his face. His smirk faded though as Deku only met his gaze for a moment before the red haired boy beside him pulled his attention away.

Near the board, the class watched as Mineta fell to his knees. His classmates weren't sure exactly how to react, each pleased that they hadn't been last but equally (in most cases) sad that someone had to leave. Aizawa coughed, drawing their attention.

"Alright everyone. That ends my orientation. Now we know where you stand, and where you need to improve. Each of you have your schedule, classes start tomorrow. There isn't any logical reason that you need to stay on campus, but there are some presentations going on at the cafeteria that I'm obligated to tell you about. There aren't any clubs at UA, at least none for the hero course students. You'll be too busy for that anyways. If there are no questions then I'll see you tomorrow."

"Wait!" Mineta called out as Aizawa turned to leave. "What about me? Am I… am I… _expelled?_ "

Aizawa raised an eyebrow at the boy, not saying a word. Izuku gulped for a moment. Aizawa was strict, unyielding. This wasn't going to be pretty.

"Oh that?" Aizawa grinned, and this time the class was faced with confusion rather than fear, "That was just a rational lie to make sure you all tried your best. Fear is often a great motivator, plus this way I could see how you react to that fear." With that he turned and walked away. For a moment the class just watched.

"YES!" Mineta called out.

"A lie!?" Kaminari shouted.

"I was so scared" Hagakure said, possibly wiping her brow if how her clothes moved was any indicator.

"I mean it makes sense…" Mina said.

"Ya, ribbit. How could a teacher expel someone? That's a lot of power for an instructor." Yaoyorozu sighed as they talked, drawing everyone's attention.

"It wasn't obvious? He clearly wanted us to try our hardest, so of course he found a way to motivate us. If he had planned to expel one of us it wouldn't have been so random." Ochako nodded as Momo spoke. That made sense. However, her thoughts were interrupted as Izuku shook his head.

"No." Momo looked over at the green haired boy, who was watching the retreating figure of their new teacher.

"What do you mean Izuku?" Izuku jumped as Ochako poked his shoulder, eyes wide. Kirishima grinned beside him.

"C'mon man, you can't say that and not explain yourself!"

"O-Oh! Umm, I just mean th-that he wasn't lying about expelling s-someone. Last year he expelled an entire c-class after a single day."

"Oh." Momo said, looking concerned, "I hadn't known that..."

The entire class turned to look towards the school, just barely catching a glance of the pro before he slipped into the building, all wondering why he had changed his mind. A bell rang out across the field, and the sounds of students filled the air coming from the main building. Orientation was finished, and for better or for worse they had all made it through.

* * *

Later that day Izuku found himself laying in the grass looking up at the clouds that lazily crossed the sky. He had situated himself on a small hill not far from the main UA building, settling down to lay in the grass alone. Eri had started lessons with All Might and Aizawa a little while ago, and with school just barely starting it wasn't like he had any homework do, so this afternoon looked like it was gearing up to be a simple one. Honestly though, it had been some time since it had just been him. He had gotten used to Eri being present... Usually if she wasn't there it was because he was off training, so it was a bit odd being on the other side of that. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The breeze was nice, even if it was a little chilly. The sun helped to chase away the cold as well, so he couldn't complain.

Not a lot had happened since the end of their little quirk test. The others had deemed it necessary to take a tour of the campus, something that Izuku hadn't needed since he had lived here for some time now. Instead he decided to take a small break, for the first time in a while just laying back and relaxing. Slowly his eyes grew heavy as he looked up at the peaceful sky. He had a few hours before he had to be back at the dorm to take Eri off Aizawa's hands, so for now he could just…

"DEKU!" Two voices broke through the serene silence that had covered the hillside just moments before, startling Izuku. Looking up he saw three people approaching from the main building, though one of them was definitely not with the other two.

Bakugo looked over at the other two slightly behind him, his footsteps halting as he glared over at the brown haired girl who had used the nickname he had designed. Izuku couldn't be sure, as all of Kacchan's emotions were often tinted with anger (or at least frustration), but he almost looked confused. His hesitation cost him though, as Ochako stepped forward with Iida by her side and started talking.

"Hey! Whatcha doin up here Deku?"

"H-Hey guys! I was just watching the clouds. Eri is going to be in quirk training for a few hours so I was just taking some t-time to relax," He responded, rubbing the back of his head.

"Resting is important! Just make sure not to get too lackadaisical Midoriya!" Iida said, nodding his head.

"O-O-Of course not Iida! Are you guys on your way home?" Iida nodded and Ochako sighed.

"You're so lucky Izu, living on campus." Izuku felt the blood rush to his face as Iida looked at him in shock, Bakugo's face behind them also showing surprise in the form of a glare.

"I was not aware of campus dorms! What a wonderful opportunity Midoriya! Living on the campus of UA."

"Ya, they just recently installed them! It has been p-pretty cool. I believe the plan is to eventually convert the whole school into a boarding school format! Eri and I have been living there for the last month or so." A cough came from behind the two as Izuku finished talking. Bakugo was now glaring at all three of them.

"Hey! Four-eyes, pink cheeks, shove off!"

"Pink cheeks?"

"Four eyes?!"

"It's alright guys," Izuku said, shrugging at them as Bakugo walked away, obviously wanting Izuku to follow, "I should talk t-to him…" He paused.

"If y-you guys w-want to wait I could walk to the t-train station w-with you." He quickly stuttered out. He and Ochako were friends right? He could walk to the station with them, asking wasn't weird? Internally he cursed himself for being so awkward.

"Of course Midoriya! We will wait by the entrance way!" And with that Iida was off, walking stiffly towards the exit. Ochako laughed as he all but ran off before giving Izuku a soft smile and walking after him. Izuku smiled as they walked away, but his happiness faded as he walked towards his childhood… friend? Bully? There were a lot of words that could be used to describe Kacchan, but even now he never knew exactly what word to use

As he approached Bakugo turned and glared at him, before speaking in a somewhat quiet voice.

"How long?" His voice was low, and dangerous.

"W-What?"

"You heard me. How long you damn nerd?" Izuku gulped. Oh. Izuku's insides twisted at the question.

A building. A fall. Fear. Panic. _Shame_.

"…"

"Well?" One word could hold a lot of anger. Izuku sighed, ignoring the echo of Bakugo's words resounding in his head. It was better to just get this over with quickly he supposed.

"Two years." He whispered. This time it was Kacchan who remained quiet. But unlike Izuku's silence, his seemed to be rooted in the rage that filled his eyes.

"Two years. You knew for _two years?_ " Bakugo seemed to be smoking, explosions already popping lightly in his hands. Izuku nodded, and his eyes darkened as the past assaulted his mind.

 _If you are so ready to die, then maybe you_ should _jump off a roof._

"It was actually something you said Kacchan that helped me discover it." He whispered.

"Why the hell would you keep that a secret? You couldn't even do that right?! What the hell was going through that useless head?" Izuku smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes.

"I've always wanted to be a hero Kacchan. Nothing changed." He said, looking away, and Bakugo glared. Izuku was keeping a secret, he knew the idiot well enough to be able to tell that much. He had never been the best at keeping secrets when they were kids. He glared again, laughing darkly.

"Fine. It doesn't matter anyways. Quirk or no quirk, I _will_ beat you. You'll still be a useless _Deku_ , just like always." He sneered. His words did not have the desired effect though, as Izuku's eyes wandered over his shoulder and some of that darkness in his eyes faded.

"Maybe being Deku isn't that bad." He said, and before Bakugo could respond he began walking. Turning, Bakugo saw two figures waving by the entrance of the school. Four eyes and pink cheeks. Rage filled him. How dare he walk away? Before the green-haired boy could go far he reached forward and grabbed his shoulder.

"If you're such a hero, meet me at the warehouses by my parents' place tonight. Then we can see how much of a hero you are." Izuku gulped and nodded quickly. After one more glare Bakugo let go of his shoulder and he was free to run over to Iida and Ochako.

"What did Bakugo want Midoriya?"

"K-Kacchan? Oh, he just was c-curious about my quirk!" Iida nodded.

"It is a rather marvelous quirk! Very practical, truly a hero will be a good fit for it." Looking at his watch Iida's eyes widened. "We have to leave quickly if I'm going to make my train! Come one you two!" The two laughed as he sped off, sharing a glance before running off after him.

The trip didn't take very long, but like the walk he had shared with Ochako a couple weeks ago they had enough time to get to know each other. He learned that Iida had attended a high end middle school. He learned about his friends' families as well, and in return told them about his mother.

"And what of your father?" Izuku shrugged at Iida's question.

"I'm not sure. Mom doesn't like to talk about him. She told me once that he worked in America, but that was when I was little. All I really know is that he has a fire-breathing quirk."

He waved off their concerned looks. Honestly his dad wasn't really an issue for him. He hadn't been around for so long that it was really just a fact of life. Soon they were at the station, and after a quick goodbye Iida boarded his train and off he went. Smiling at his new friend, who was waving at them through the glass door of the train.

"S-So, when does your t-train leave U-Ochako?" The gravity user smiled sheepishly.

"Oh, I sorta already missed it." She laughed. "But we wanted to wait for you, so it's alright! I only live about a half hour from here." Izuku cringed. She missed her train because of him?

"Do you want me to walk home you home?" The words left his mouth before he could think.

"O-Oh! Umm, y-ya! Sure, that would be cool!" Ochako blushed as she responded. Luckily, Izuku was blushing just as hard.

The awkwardness only lasted for a few minutes into the walk, Izuku mused later. In fact, after only a couple blocks Ochako made an offhand comment a movie poster on a billboard and their conversation started anew. For the next half hour they walked and chatted, and before Izuku realized it they were standing at the door of a small apartment.

"Well, this is it!" Ochako said, "Thanks for walking with me Izu!" She giggled a bit at the blush that started on his cheeks.

"N-No problem Ochako!" He said a bit too loudly. Clearing his throat, he looked around. "This is a pretty nice apartment building!" Ochako smiled. That was something she had noticed over the course of their walk. The longer he walked with her, the less and less stuttering filled his sentences.

"Ya, but it's _really_ expensive. Maybe I'll talk to the teachers about the dorms and come live on campus with you!" For a moment silence reigned between them.

"I MEAN IN THE SAME BUILDING AS YOU! NOT WITH YOU! NOT THAT LIVING WITH YOU WOULD BE BAD! I MEAN LIVING IN HEIGHTS ALLIANCE! OH, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN!" She yelled out, internally lamenting that it was her turn to blush. Really, she wasn't usually like this… but for some reason around Deku she seemed to blush just as often as he did. Meanwhile, Izuku nodded his head quickly.

"Y-Y-Ya! I know what you m-mean!" A few seconds passed, awkward silence still present, before Ochako meekly tried to fill the void.

"So are you heading back yet?" Izuku frowned and shook his head. Ochako felt worry for her friend pass through her as he did.

"No, I have something I need to do first."

"Does it have to do with Bakugo?" Izuku looked up shocked.

"How…"

"You had the same look when you talked to him earlier, so I just thought maybe it was connected." Izuku sighed before nodding.

"Ya, Kacchan wanted to meet really fast tonight. It's okay though! I'll just flicker over there then hurry back to UA and pick up Eri. I'll see you tomorrow?" Ochako nodded. They had talked quite a bit now during their walks, but no matter what they discussed, Izuku had remained really quiet about his childhood. No mention of Bakugo, or his school, or his friends. She knew lots about him, his likes, his dream of being a hero, even about his favorite food, but almost nothing about his life outside living with his mother.

"Ya, I'll see you tomorrow for sure!" She said cheerfully. Izuku was sad, she could see that. So when he turned to leave she couldn't help but think that she would be sure to make him smile tomorrow. She liked his smile.

Izuku sighed as he walked down to the ground floor. Looking down at his phone he saw a message from a number that he didn't think had ever texted him. He wasn't even sure how he had his number.

 _Ten minutes nerd._

He sighed and spared one more look up at Ochako's door. Despite where he was heading next, he couldn't help but smile softly. It had been a lot of fun walking with her. As he let his power pull him away he wasn't aware of the girl watching him from her window, smiling sadly, worried as he disappeared.

* * *

 **And there you have it! Hope you guys enjoyed it, and hopefully I will be able to get a new chapter out much, much faster than this one! I can't wait for you to read it. With that said, I wish you all ado, Glitch out!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey everyone! I am sorry for the huge wait between updates! School has been absolutely crazy. I've been swamped with work and projects and papers for months, and prepping for graduation and grad school has been no less intense. However, I managed to find some time recently and got some words out! I promise I'm trying, but school kinda has** **priority (you know, future career and such). Anyways, here's the next chapter! I enjoyed writing it, but I'm not sure with how everything turned out. I hope you guys like it!**

 **Disclaimer: Still not mine.**

 **Well, here's the chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

Izuku frowned as he walked down the familiar streets. It had only been just under two months… but the streets were so unfamiliar now. So cold. He shivered as he approached the area he had once used to train. Where he had once almost lost everything.

 _Where I met All Might_.

The thought broke through, surprising Izuku. Though, he mused, it wasn't wrong. This old abandoned district had been the start of his journey in more ways than one he supposed. And now something else would start there. Or perhaps end there… Izuku didn't know. Honestly he wasn't even sure why he was going. Why was he so willing to go and do what Bakugo told him to? They were friends once, but they hadn't been for years… not really.

Maybe he just longed for things to return back to normal. He knew Bakugo was… rough. He shook his head. No, he was far worse than rough. But, Izuku also knew that while he wasn't a nice person, his goal was still to be a hero. There had to be some kindness left, even if it was buried in anger.

 _Wait up Kacchan!_

 _Hurry up Izuku! My mom is going to kill us._

The voices echoed around his mind. It was so long ago, before Kacchan had gotten his quirk. Before he had become obsessed with becoming the strongest, the best. Maybe that was why he had decided to come. Bakugo was both everything he wanted to be and yet everything he wanted to avoid. He was brave, strong and powerful, but above all he was driven. He had always been better than Izuku, at everything expect maybe some school subjects. He was someone that Izuku would have to face one day if he ever truly wanted to succeed.

Izuku's footsteps slowed as he entered the main yard of the warehouse district. Standing in front of him, in front of a familiar building with a familiar ledge, was Bakugo. Kacchan. Silence reigned now as he approached, the blond continuing his glaring. Izuku tried, he really did, but he couldn't meet his gaze. Whether it was his blazing eyes, or the draw from that old ledge, he found himself looking upwards. Bakugo scoffed.

"You can't even look me in the eye useless?"

Izuku gulped. This wasn't starting well. However, his gaze remained unchanged. It had been some time since he had looked at that edge in this way, but now? With Kacchan standing under it? He shuddered.

"What the hell are you staring at?!" Bakugo ground out, turning to look up at the top of the building. Finding nothing he turned back to see Izuku shudder. "You are so useless Deku. Scared already? What the hell is wrong with you?"

Later, Izuku would note that this was the quietest Bakugo had ever been towards him. Not necessarily the calmest, but definitely the quietest. His gaze dropped, finally meeting his… Kacchan's eyes. Whatever was in his gaze must have startled the blond boy, as his glare lessened for a moment. Izuku didn't see what he did next though as his gaze continued to fall towards the grounds.

"This is where my journey began… where I d-discovered my quirk and decided for sure that I want to be a hero beyond a doubt." Ignoring the voices of his past, he continued, "This is where I found out that I _could_ be a hero, that I wasn't quirkless. In a way I discovered I actually mattered."

Izuku didn't really know why he was saying all of this to the blonde. Did he want the other boy to understand? Did he want to reassure him that he hadn't done it to spite him? Did he want him to feel bad? Izuku knew he was smarter than average in some regards, but for all the observations he had made he just didn't _understand_ this.

"And you kept it a _secret_." Izuku nodded as Bakugo spoke. "Let's get one thing straight nerd. I don't care if this is where you 'became a hero', alright? All I care about is showing you that you are still _Deku_. You will always be Deku! I WILL ALWAYS BE AHEAD OF YOU, GOT IT? I _WILL_ BEAT YOU! I WILL BE THE NUMBER ONE HERO, I WILL BE THE BEST!"

By the end of his rant Bakugo was yelling, glaring at Izuku with unconstrained hatred, pain and anger blazing in his eyes. Izuku took a breath, but before he could speak Bakugo spoke again. His voice was quieter, but his body was shaking in anger as he said them.

"I told you when we were kids you would never be a hero Deku. But you still followed me around, still _tried_. I never believed you nerd. I NEVER thought you would be in UA, _never_. I still think you're weak Deku, and you're going to get in my way. But now you can try again."

"W-What?" Izuku stuttered out, confused. Bakugo began walking forward, explosions popping in his hands.

"Prove it _Deku_. You think you're a hero? THAT YOU CAN SURVIVE UA? THAT YOU BELONG?! THEN SHOW ME!" As he finished a much larger explosion echoed across the empty lot.

Then Bakugo took a step.

Izuku's mind raced. Bakugo wanted him to prove himself? How… How could he prove himself? Fight back? _Fight Bakugo?_ The idea was so incredibly outlandish, but Izuku found his mouth dry as he realized he may not get a choice. Bakugo was taking another step now, and another. Before Izuku could think for much longer Bakugo was sprinting towards him.

"W-Wait Kacchan! We aren't supposed to–" His eyes widened as the boy leapt, and his body reacted accordingly. A crack later and Izuku stood where Bakugo had once stood. "Kacchan! We aren't supposed to –" Izuku yelped as a piece of trash came flying at him, lunging to the side to avoid the scrap that had been blasted at him across the courtyard. He hadn't even seen him pick the scrap up…

He couldn't think on it very long though as Bakugo once again came flying across the empty courtyard, another ball of scrap screaming ahead of him. Izuku flickered to the side, waving his hands as he reappeared and internally cursing Mr. Aizawa for giving Bakugo the idea to throw things with his quirk.

"Kacchan! We are going to get in tr–"

"I DON'T CARE!" Izuku blinked as the blond turned to face his new location snarling. "THIS ISN'T ABOUT GETTING IN TROUBLE NERD! IF YOU WONT FIGHT BACK, THEN AT LEAST TAKE A HIT LIKE A MAN!"

With that Bakugo launched himself forwards, his explosions propelling him almost faster than Izuku could keep track of. Instinctively flickering, Izuku appeared a few feet away before rolling to the side, another ball of trash slamming into where he had just been. Heat came from behind him as he came to a stop and he turned to see Bakugo's hand coming flying at him.

 **BOOOOOM!**

The explosion echoed loudly for miles. Bakugo snarled as a flickering of emerald light shone from behind him, and spun to face Izuku. Said boy was coughing, his school jacket slightly singed from the beginnings of the explosion he had just barely dodged.

"So you can be hit." Bakugo said, smiling viscously as Izuku straightened. "That's what I thought. I just had to get used to your movements! You can't win by just dodging Deku! Ready to take this seriously?"

Izuku just stared at Bakugo, eyes wide, before looking down at his hands. All was still for a moment, until a splash of red dropped into Izuku's vision. A drop of blood had dripped from his face into the palm of his hand as something inside him protested. The drop was soon joined by another, and Izuku could feel his nose dripping the red liquid as he stood there. Internally though, his mind was racing.

 _That attack was huge. Kacchan is so fast too, I can barely keep track of him, and my powers are still a bit limited from using them so much this morning. I think that if I… No. Wait. Fighting with our quirks could get us in a lot of trouble, not only with UA, but with the police too! I don't even know how much time we have until someone shows up, that last blast was really loud._

"HEY NERD! THERE'S NO TIME TO MUTTER TO YOURSELF! WHAT'S IT GOING TO BE DEKU?" Bakugo yelled, "FIGHT ME!"

What should he do? Why was he here? Why did he even come? It wasn't like Izuku hadn't seen this coming. Well, maybe not _this_ exactly, but he had known this would be a confrontation, a battle of some sorts. And for what? Kacchan wasn't his friend, he knew that. He had felt friendship, and what he and Bakugo was nothing like that. Not anymore.

But he was there now, with Bakugo. This was just another part of his journey, another step to become a hero. He just… had to win.

But maybe he could pass this test another way.

"No." The word was quiet.

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

Izuku shook his head and turned to face Bakugo. Bakugo glared, but for once Izuku didn't care. He had to do this.

"If we fight now then our journeys to becoming heroes could end before they even start Kacchan. I can't let my dream disappear like that. And I know that we…" He paused, before continuing quietly. He knew it was true, but it was the first time he had ever, _ever_ admitted it out loud. "We aren't friends. But I know you want to be a hero too. If we fight now everything we've worked for is gone."

Izuku shook his head again as the images of people flashed through his mind. His mother, Aizawa, All Might. Eri… He couldn't let them all down. Not here. Not now. Mind made up he watched Bakugo glare, the blond obviously torn.

A minute passed, both boys tense as they stared at each other.

Sighing angrily, Bakugo straightened. He growled as Izuku smiled, relieved, and let out the breath he had been holding.

"Fine, whatever nerd. I got what I wanted anyways." He said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"W-What?" Izuku asked, confused.

"Tomorrow we're doing hero combat training." Bakugo continued talking, ignoring Izuku entirely. "I am going to _crush you_ , understand?"

His eyes narrowed as he glared at his classmate. His next words came out quiet and menacing.

"You better bring your all. You better come at me, no matter what, or I will kill you faster than you can blink, got that _Deku_? You better be ready to fight, no more damn running around like today? I am going to prove that I am better than you, whether you are prepared or not."

Izuku nodded quickly. Bakugo growled before turning to walk away.

"Kacchan!" Bakugo paused.

Izuku took a breath, building up his courage and stopping his shaking hand. Now that they had stopped moving his gaze was drawn back to his ledge.

"I d-do belong in UA. I am going to become a hero, no matter h-how hard it is. And I will prove it to you that I belong here too, b-beyond a doubt!"

Bakugo snorted, before continuing his walk. He didn't care, not really. Izuku's reasons didn't matter, what mattered was that he didn't belong. He couldn't cut it, he was just Deku. And tomorrow Bakugo would prove it. As he turned around a corner, leaving the sight of Deku, he pulled out a piece of paper. It was a lesson plan, one he had seen laying on the desk of their new teacher. It outlined tomorrow's class, and the pairings that would be "randomly" assigned. It was a good test, looking at their ability to adapt and work together, but Bakugo didn't really care about that. What he cared about was the names on the first match.

Team A: Midoriya and Ochako vs. Team D: Bakugo and Yaoyorozu.

* * *

"There he is."

"Well well well, you weren't mistaken. That's good for you I suppose." The two men stood on a nearby building, one lowering a pair of binoculars from his face as he watched the green haired boy slump as the blond walked away from the warehouse yard. The boy seemed tired, both physically and mentally. If only he was close enough to hear him…

Weakness. Fear. Trepidation. Anger. All these and more were layered in a voice, and his quirk allowed him to hear it all. He had been mocked for years, for decades, at the noise cancelling headphones he wore. But they had been silenced years ago. As it turns out, the sound of a knife splitting skin was not just different, it was oh so satisfying. He sighed and adjusted his mask. It was a shame that he was only a communication expert for Chisaki, the sounds of a person's last breath was a holy note that he hadn't heard in some time.

"Jirako," he said as the eight eyed man turned to face him. He adjusted his beak-like mask. Scum really, Jirako was the bottom of the underworld. One could not refute his skills were useful though. His face was such an eyesore though, and though the potential for espionage was great the sound of his eyes constantly spinning his skull was aggravating. Alas, the ability to see through remotely placed "eyes" was too good to dispose of.

"Yes sir?" The man in the mask sneered, not that Jirako could see it. The street rat was always more respectful in person.

"We appear to be finished here. Go back to whatever hole you climbed out of, and contact me when the boy leaves the campus again. I will prepare. Next time we will be ready to act."

"But, what about those powers of his? You said he was a teleporter. We just watched him teleport!" Jirako winced as he finished the sentence. The masked man turned and looked away, his hand reaching down to where Jirako knew there was a knife hidden in his jacket. It wouldn't be the first time he had been threatened with that knife.

"I mean of course boss, I'll contact you as soon as he leaves the school grounds!" With that Jirako turned and walked away as quickly as he could. These people were paying him more than any other job he had taken, but he knew better than to push their limits. Apparently the guy that used to do this job hadn't known better and last he heard his body had been found floating in the bay.

The masked man frowned as the grungy street criminal began moving quickly. A shame, he had hoped to at least hear some flesh splitting tonight. He closed his eyes, thinking what he craved. That heavenly sound of life fading, and the rasp of a breath that knew there was nothing it could do. That beautiful–

 _Shlick_.

The man gasped as the sound he craved filled the air. It was just as he had always heard it, but something was off. Opening his eyes he looked down, expecting to see the blood dripping off his blade.

He wasn't however, expecting to see said blade sticking out of his own chest.

Gasping, he stumbled backwards. He only managed a few steps before hitting a wall. Turning his head, he cringed as his own breaths shallowed. The sound… it was perfect, and yet the pleasure of hearing it was dulled by the pain spreading from his chest. His eyes looked down at his chest as he fell to the ground, slumping as he pulled at his shirt. Soon the open wound was exposed, the bright red liquid flowing out of it quickly.

 _How? I didn't hear anything! Wait… where's the knife?_

"Looking for this?" The man raised his head, only managing a few inches before the strain was too much. He was able to make out two shapes before his head fell forwards, one much larger than the other. The voice, deep and baritone, chuckled.

"Come now Suna," the voice said to his companion, "Give the man his knife back."

The smaller shape approached, and the masked man found himself staring at the feet of this 'Suna'. His eyes widened as the figure knelt to the ground, gently moving him into a position in which he could see the two people far more clearly.

Suna appeared to be a young woman, no more than mid-twenties was probably a fair guess at her age. Dressed in black, her appearance appeared to be based off of that of a ninja, though she carried no weapons. While she wasn't wearing a full mask, her dark purple hair tied in a ponytail, her mouth was covered. He did not need to guess at her emotions, her intense orange eyes made it clear that she was not pleased. She raised an empty hand, and the man watched as the small flecks of black seemed to waft off the glove.

 _Sand?_

The specks gathered in the air for a second before launching forwards. Just before they hit his chest they seemed to solidify, and the masked man was left staring at his own knife stabbing him once more, this time in his stomach.

"People like you are so easy to kill." The second figure moved forward. He seemed to be dressed far simpler than his companion, business casual even. Unlike his companion though his face was covered, a helmet of some sort of blue metal blocked his view of the man's face. The larger man knelt down.

"You had so much faith in your quirk, you thought you could hear anything. Well I am sorry to inform you little watchman, but your faith is misplaced. You little birds appear to be all over this area, aren't you? All ruffled feathers because of a simple boy. I must say though, after seeing him in action I must agree that he is interesting. A little unexperienced yet, but that power… all that potential, and you are unable to see past your little plan. My, Behemoth truly has let his hold over this area falter, hasn't he? Why, when we were younger he wouldn't have hesitated to strike you and your little group down like the crows you are." He stood, and straightened the light blazer he had on.

" _Who… are you_." Rasped the bleeding man. That was the sound he had been craving, the sound of words whispered because there was no strength to talk. If only it wasn't his voice. The large man sighed before reaching forward. The masked man's eyes widened as the large hand covered his face. His mouth opened, voice struggling to scream, but his throat was suddenly dry.

"Come now, I know you have heard of me. Surely the crows' nest isn't so arrogant to ignore the rumors of my return? Or perhaps Japan does not remember me? Do _you_ not remember me?" The masked man spasmed as he felt his skin begin to dry under the touch of the man. "Hush now, no need to fear. The human body is so fragile, so easily broken. All I need to do is take away the water from certain areas you see, and…"

Thump.

The man let go of the now shrivelled corpse, dried and cracked. Water swirled at his fingertips before flowing into his skin as he let loose a chuckle. Humans really were so weak. So few of them ever reached the strength he held himself at. However, he had to be careful, Behemoth still commanded this land, albeit now from the shadows. That was one person that even he hesitated to attack, if only because he didn't know what combination of quirks he had amassed at this time.

"Suna, would you please dispose of the body?" The girl nodded. "Good. Make sure it is delivered post haste my dear, with my usual message. Let the bird's nest scramble, for now." His gaze shifted as he stared at the yard where only a short time ago two boys stood. It wouldn't do for too much to happen right now, least of all a war with the heroes. He had an army to build first. He smiled as he turned and began walking away, confident that Suna would be able to find him. She knew what to do.

* * *

Izuku gasped as he bolted awake. Reaching up he wiped some sweat off his brow, frowning at the emerald sparks that flew off his skin as he did. He appeared to be drenched in sweat, and really he wasn't surprised. He hadn't had a nightmare that intense in years, not since before he had discovered his quirk. The ledge, the falling. The sneers and attacks of his peers, both physical and verbal, echoed even now. His hands shook as a few more sparks left his skin, and he took a few deep breaths.

Shaking his head, he tried to ignore the echoes from his nightmare. It hadn't been anything new, but it had all seemed so… real. He could still hear his own whimpers filling the air.

Izuku's eyes widened as the whimpering got louder. That was NOT in his head. Looking across the room the last vestiges of sleep left him as a dim light was shining from Eri's bed. Leaping up, Izuku ran across the room to her bedside. Eri was still asleep, but her blankets were thrown off as she tossed and turned with a grimace on her face, her horn glowing slightly. Her lips moved near silently, only the whimpering escaping her throat. Izuku winced. It appeared he wasn't the only one that was having nightmares.

"No," her cracked voice finally let out. Izuku hesitated. He knew that waking someone up from a nightmare was usually the right thing to do, but he had also heard of things similar to nightmares where waking someone up could make everything worse.

"Please no… I don't want… please no… I don't want to make them disappear! PLEASE NO, DON'T!"

As her screams filled the air Izuku lunged forward. He couldn't just sit there! Pulling the now crying girl into his lap, he ignored her screams as he began to rub her back softly, whispering.

"It's okay Eri, it's alright. Shhh, its okay." He whispered, hugging her tightly. As he did he looked down at his hand, and felt the tears begin to leave his own eyes. He may have scarred his hand with his power, but Eri's scars ran much deeper than the flesh.

"Izu?" A broken voice questioned. Pulling back softly, Izuku looked down into the confused, scared, and very awake eyes of his charge.

"Hey Eri."

"Izu!" Upon hearing his reply she learned forward, her sobs filling the quietness of their little room as she buried herself in his chest. Izuku only hugged her tighter as she cried. "I didn't mean to! I'm sorry, I didn't want them to disappear, I promise! I didn't know!" She wailed. Izuku nodded.

"I know, I know Eri." His words did little calm her down though as she continued to plead for forgiveness. Izuku's own nightmare echoed again, his own sorrows. His own plea.

 _I'm sorry!_

"Eri," he said again, pulling the small girl to arm length. His grip stayed strong, reassuring as he did, "Eri it's okay. I promise it's okay. Everyone makes mistakes, and we all have things that happen that we want to forget. Everyone." Eri's tears slowed, but didn't stop as she stared up at him.

"Even you?" Her voice was small and ragged. Izuku nodded.

"Even me."

"Like what? Izu, you're a hero, a superhero! You… you're perfect." She finished quietly. Izuku shook his head, and pulled her in for another hug. This time she wrapped her small arms around him as well, and Izuku smiled despite himself. This was progress.

"I'm not perfect Eri. I have nightmares too. I had one tonight."

"About what?" Her sobs had abated now, only sniffles left.

He hesitated. His nightmare…

"It was about a mistake I almost made once." Izuku replied, wincing. This wasn't something he could just talk about. He hadn't told anyone about what had happened, and he certainly wasn't going to start with Eri. She had already been through so much. He regretted brining this up in the first place, but it was a little too late now. He just had to pray that she didn't pry for more information.

"A mistake?" she parroted. Izuku gulped. She was so young… but she was also so scared. Terrified, and looking for help. From him. Izuku really didn't want to talk about this, but he knew he needed to say something. Something to help her, to show her that everyone needed help. Even the heroes in their lives. He also knew he couldn't bring himself to lie to her (he wasn't very good at lying anyways). He needed to connect to the emotions of his story without letting her know exactly what happened. Maybe he could make the experience less… intense.

"When I was younger, years ago, I was bullied. A lot. One day, someone I had trusted… someone I saw as a friend… said something really mean to me, something that I believed. And because of that I almost… ran away." Izuku said softly, his heart aching as the memories of that night and his nightmare ran through his mind in a flash. "I almost made a big mistake Eri, and if I did I wouldn't have been here, not to save you, not to become a hero."

Eri sniffled again.

"But you know what?" Izuku continued. Her head moved back and forth across his shirt, shaking no. "Even though I almost made that mistake, I was able to turn it around. I was able to make things better. I didn't run away. But even after that I had to work hard. Luckily, I didn't do it alone." At this Eri looked up, her head no longer buried against his chest.

"You didn't?"

"No, I had my mom, and later I had All Might to help me too. And guess what Eri?"

"What?" She echoed. Izuku hugged her tightly, a warmth filling his chest similar to when he had first decided to protect her.

"I have you to help me. And you have me. You have All Might, Mr. Aizawa, and everyone else too. And we will always be here to help you." Izuku smiled down at her, his heart light as she softly smiled back.

"Always?"

"Always Eri."

For the next 15 minutes they barely moved, the only exception being Izuku's mouth as he began telling her the happiest stories he could think of. Oddly, many of his tales were centered around his "adventures" with Kacchan when they were younger, before his quirk manifested. He supposed that those really were the happiest moments of his childhood, though the bittersweet taste of his words wouldn't fade.

It took some time, but slowly and surely Eri calmed and the glow coming off her horn abated. With tears cried and nightmares overcome, the two made their way down to the kitchen and living area. After a few minutes they sat down on the couch, a cup of hot chocolate in each of their hands. Izuku smiled as the small girl finished her cup, before leaning into him and slowly drifting back to sleep. He sighed and grabbed his most recent quirk analysis book, flipping to his newest pages and began recording his observations from earlier that day. Or technically it was yesterday he supposed. After a nightmare like that he knew he wasn't getting back to sleep for a while. Still, talking about it had helped, even if it had been a way to calm Eri down. He frowned. Was that the right choice? Eri was so young… and he hadn't even talked about "running away" with… well, with anyone. No one knew.

Izuku shrugged. He knew he wasn't the best at all of this. Maybe it had been a mistake, and maybe it was alright. All he knew was that it had worked, it had helped. He just couldn't stand to see Eri begging for help without doing everything he could to save her. Honestly, some of this was way over his head. He was a teenager for crying out loud. But he had promised to take care of her, and that meant protecting her from more than just the physical threats. Maybe he wasn't the most qualified, he certainly had been though his fair share of traumatic experiences, but he knew he would try his hardest.

With that in mind he turned the page, and started on his next entry. He still had a few more preliminary assessment of his classmates to add to his latest volume.

* * *

"Hey Iida!" Ochako called out. Said boy stopped and turned, waving his arm mechanically as he waited for her to approach.

"Uraraka! It is good to see you again! I trust you are well prepared for our first real day?" She smiled, giving the blue-haired boy a thumbs up.

"Of course! Hopefully it isn't as scary as yesterday though."

"Indeed, yesterday was quite stressful. But I trust that our teacher's know what they are doing. This is UA after all."

Ochako nodded as she put her stuff in her locker, laughing. Stressful didn't even cover what she had felt during the "quirk test" (as she had taken to calling it). That hardly matter though, as they had all passed! She was just excited to get started. First day of school here she comes!

"So Iida, are you ready?" Iida nodded as they began making their way to the classroom. As he talked he watched in amusement as Ochako looked around, obviously searching for something.

"Well of course, Uraraka. I have been preparing non-stop since returning home last night. One cannot be too ready for the trials ahead!"

"Ya, I guess you're right." She sighed as they continued walking down the hallway to 1-A.

The night before she had watched as Izuku had flickered away, and she honestly was still worried for him. He had seemed so sad, a stark contrast to the happy (though stuttering) boy he had been during their walk. And it all had to do with his meeting with Bakugo.

"OUT OF THE WAY YOU EXTRAS!" Ochako fought the urge to roll her eyes. She could hear him walking through the halls even now. He was so loud, so angry, and for some reason it was only worse when Izuku was involved. She cringed as she thought of Izuku's first demonstration of his quirk during their examination, and Bakugo's literal explosive response. They obviously knew each other from before, but Ochako wasn't exactly sure why he hated Izu so much.

"Are you feeling alright Uraraka?" Iida's voice cut through her thoughts. She shook her head to clear her thoughts before turning to her new friend.

"Oh ya! I'm fine. Just looking for Deku."

"Ah yes, Midoriya should be here soon. He should be here early. Living on campus is such a wonderful opportunity, I would be surprised if he was ever late!"

"I know, I'm just a bit worried, that's all. He was going to meet with Bakugo after the train station last night…" Iida frowned.

"Yes, that may be a case for worrying. Yesterday certainly showcased our classmates tendency towards aggression. I'm certain everything worked out just fine, while he may be brash, Midoriya has certainly proved himself capable of handling himself."

Ochako nodded and Iida changed the subject to the class schedule, praising the idea of holding normal classes every morning. Apparently many Hero School attempted to hold normal classes only during the first half of the week, and have Hero classes the rest, but this was inadequate because… well, Ochako didn't really follow, but Iida definitely knew why. As Iida continued talking, they arrived at the classroom. The door was open and they noticed with some relief that no screaming was coming out from the room. Bakugo must not have arrived yet.

"Hey Uraraka!" A chipper voice called out.

"Mina! How's your morning going?" Mina smiled, her pink face brightening.

"Awesome! My train gets here super early though," she whined, "I was here all alone for almost an hour!"

"Hey!" another voice called out, gaining their attention. Kirishima walked up with Kaminari beside him, scowling jokingly. "We got here just as early as you! And it was only half an hour."

"It felt like an hour though! Just me in a boring old classroom." She sighed dramatically.

"I got here before you! It hasn't been that long." Kaminari chimed in. Mina laughed, lightly elbowing Uraraka before stage whispering.

"Like I said basically all alone."

"Hey!"

Kirishima chuckled loudly, and the group all smiled. Even Iida, who had been in the middle of protesting their un-student-like behavior couldn't help but stop for a moment. But only one.

"Class is starting soon, so we should all take our seats!" He proclaimed. Kirishima smirked.

"Lighten up Iida! We've still got 5 minutes! Most of us aren't even here yet!" True to his word, only a few people were in the room, Ochako noted. Besides the 5 of them standing near the entrance, there were only four other people present. Yaoyorozu was sitting in the back, with Todoroki sitting in his seat beside her. They appeared to be reading, both of them silent as they prepared for the upcoming class. The only other ones in the room were…

"Oh." Ochako said, seeing the other two occupants. Slouched over his desk, seemingly sleeping, was Izuku. Eri was seated beside him, cutely poking his cheek every few moments. Smiling, Kirishima followed her gaze.

"Ya, they showed up like 10 minutes ago. Midoriya said hi, but he fell asleep pretty quickly after he sat down."

"While I did say that he should get to class early, I certainly didn't mean he should sleep at his desk!" Iida said, before marching over to the pair. Ochako laughed at his proclamation before following with Kirishima and Mina. Kaminari stayed behind as another student entered the class, grabbing his attention.

By the time the three arrived Iida had already begun.

"Midoriya! One cannot hope to excel if they are asleep in class!" He proclaimed loudly. Eri stared at him, slipping closer to Izuku and hugging him as Iida spoke. The green haired boy blinked blearily as he woke.

"Iida?" he yawned, his eyes squinted.

"Come now Midoriya, you must set an example as the number one scorer in the entrance exam!"

"Sorry Iida… tired.. Eri… nightmare, so… sleep." Came the sleepy reply. Iida sighed as the others arrived.

"Sleepiness is no excuse! We must always be attentive."

"Give him a break man!" Kirishima chimed in, cringing as Iida turned to him and began lecturing. His pleading glance at Mina was met with a laugh though as the pink girl slowly backed away.

Ochako smiled and turned to the sleeping boy, giving a small wave to Eri as she did. Eri seemed a little tired as well, but not nearly as much as Izuku.

"Morning Eri. How are you?" She asked softly. Eri turned to her and gave her a hesitant smile back. It wasn't a huge step or anything, but Ochako couldn't help but smile a little wider at the girl as she did.

 _She's so cute!_

"I'm okay Chako." She said quietly.

"Did you get a good night's sleep?" Eri shook her head softly. "Are you alright?" At this Eri nodded, before looking at Izuku.

"Izu helped me fall back asleep," she said, and Ochako smiled again.

"Well I think that's awesome Eri! But class is going to start soon, so how about we wake Izuku up so he can pay attention?" Eri nodded and sent another hesitant smile towards Ochako. The two did not notice the lack of noise from behind them as Iida and Kirishima's attention slowly drifted back towards the sleeping boy and the girls beside him. They couldn't hear what the older girl and child were saying in their hushed tones as more and more students filtered into the classroom, but they could see the relative ease that Eri was in.

"Wow," Mina whispered to the other two, "She's pretty good with kids huh?" Kirishima nodded, and Iida raised a brow.

"A useful skill I would say, especially if she ever has to participate in a rescue mission involving children." The other nodded, but any reply was interrupted as Ochako grabbed their attention by leaning over and lightly shaking Izuku.

"Hey Deku? Deku?" She asked. Eri poked his cheek again and parroted Ochako. A groan came out of the boy as he awoke, his bleary eyes blinking as he looked up and yawned.

"Ochako?" He asked, his eyes half awake. A squeal came from behind them as the said girl blushed, but she simply smiled at the waking hero to be.

"Hey sleepy head! Welcome back!"

Izuku yawned once more before stretching with a grunt. Smiling at Eri he patted her on the head as she gave him a hug before turning to his gravity friend with a tired smile.

"Welcome back?"

"To class silly! We've only got a few minutes until it starts."

"Oh!" Izuku exclaimed, looking over at the clock, "T-thanks Uraraka! I hadn't meant t-to sleep for that long!"

"No problem!" Ochako replied. Her smile faded a bit though as she asked her next question. "Are you alright Deku?"

"Ya?" Izuku replied, his confusion evident. "Why w-wouldn't I be?"

"Well…"

Her stray thoughts of worry for her friend never came to fruition, for when she opened her mouth to speak the door (which had already been mostly open) slammed open with a vicious sound. Storming into the room with barely a minute to spare, Bakugo walked directly to his seat in front of Izuku and dropped his bag with a crash. Silence reigned for a moment before muttering filled the class once more, the students slowly returning to their previous conversations. Frowning at her train of thought being interrupted, Ochako looked back towards her friend, intent on continuing to speak with him until Mr. Aizawa showed up. She wasn't surprised when she saw Izuku's face, which was anxiously looking at the obviously angry Bakugo.

What did surprise her was the face of the adorable little girl beside him.

Eri's eyes were filled with unshed tears, but unlike the usual fear and trepidation that constantly seemed to follow the child, these eyes were filled with a fire that Ochako had never seen before. Her mouth was set in a frown, and while Ochako thought it was still adorable, it was slightly off-putting when combined with the ominous glow now slightly emanating from her horn. In a word, she looked… angry.

"Eri?" Izuku asked, having seen it too. "What's wrong?" The little girl did not respond though and as her eyes focused on the boy who had just propped his feet up on his desk, to Iida's vocal complaint, they narrowed.

At the sound of his voice, the blond spared a glance backwards, glaring at the nerd who dared speak. His glare didn't quite make it that far, as Eri's expression caught his attention.

"What the hell are you pissed about pipsqueak?"

"LANGUAGE BAKUGO!" Iida yelled. He was succinctly ignored by the blond as Eri met his glare. For a moment they simply continued staring before Bakugo scoffed and turned back to the front of the class, watching as Aizawa walked through the door with his sleeping bag and a book in his arms.

"You're not a real hero."

Ochako barely heard Eri, though she was pretty sure that she was the only one besides the two boys seated by her that did. The words were quiet, barely audible to those around. Bakugo was not.

Spinning around fast enough to knock his seat to the ground, Bakugo stared with fire in his eyes at the small girl. The motion caught the attention of the entire class, and even Aizawa raised a brow. Izuku stared, shocked at her words. Eri, for the first time Izuku could remember, was still glaring at the blond, though she had now positioned her body to be mostly hidden behind the seated Izuku. Bakugo's mouth opened, his body tense as a spring as the rage boiled under his skin, but before a word could leave his mouth the toneless voice of their teacher filled the room.

"To your seats… _Now_ Bakugo."

The blond narrowed his eyes at the small girl before picking up his chair and slamming it down in its spot. Slowly the class made their way to their seats. Ochako lingered slightly, but the glare from her teacher quickly dissuaded her from staying away from her seat for too long. With a worried glance at Izuku and Eri, she made her way to the opposite side of the classroom. At this point Eri was once more hugging the green-haired boy, and as he whispered questioningly to her the glow in her horn lessened till it was nearly impossible to see.

"Well, I'm glad that you got all that socializing out of the way. This is homeroom, as I expect you have all figured out." Aizawa spoke, his expression holding only slightly more emotion than 'tired', "If you look inside your desks you will see your schedule, as well as a syllabus for each class. Mornings will be divided into normal high school subjects, each of which will be taught by a different teacher. Then you have an hour for lunch, followed by your hero courses this afternoon. Any questions?"

A hand raised. Aizawa sighed.

"Yes Miss Ashido?"

"Is All Might really going to be teaching us?!" The class erupted into mutterings at her question.

"Really?"

"Taught by All Might? That's awesome!"

A cough from the front of the room pulled their attention once more.

"Is that what it says on the schedule Miss Ashido?" Mina nodded.

"Ya."

"Then why are you wasting time asking? Don't ask illogical questions. Read through your schedule. We will meet here for 20 minutes every morning, and again at the end of the day. Any _logical_ questions? No? Good. Read through your schedule, and prep for your next class. No talking, I'm going to take a nap. If you have a question, a _logical_ question Miss Ashido, then you can wait. Unless someone is dying, you should be content reading through your schedule and syllabi. Understood?" He asked, looking directly at Bakugo. A tense moment followed, before the teen nodded slightly.

"Good."

Izuku gulped as a busy silence filled the room, as everyone except Bakugo began leafing through their schedules. It was going to be an interesting morning.

* * *

A few hours later, Izuku sighed as he took a bite of his food. The first day of classes so far had been rather… normal, surprisingly. Besides the shock of Eri's quiet words, the classes themselves had been the same as any other class he had taken. Of course, most classes he had taken were not taught by Pro Heroes, but even they acted just like (semi) normal teachers in class. All too soon the last bell for the morning had rung, and Izuku had handed Eri off to Aizawa for her own quirk training. Of course, that could just as well mean she would spend the afternoon watching movies, as though Mr. Aizawa denied it Izuku knew for a fact (Eri never could keep a secret from him for long) that at least a few of her 'training sessions' consisted of far too much Lilo and Stitch than he would have thought necessary.

Izuku sighed yet again as he took another bite. A light breeze passed by, and he paused for a moment, taking in the freshness of the air. It was a bit chilly, but the warm food in his lap kept him from feeling too cold. It was just habit, he supposed, that made him take his lunch up to the rood once more. Looking over at the door, he laughed to himself as he remembered the last lunch he had taken up here. Hatsume had provided unique, if just a little crazy, company that day. It had been a while since he had company for lunch. At least, company that actually didn't mind him being there.

Izuku shook his head. This wasn't his old school. The people weren't as cruel, he already had some friends even! Why was he eating alone? Habit again? It didn't really make much sense when he thought about it. Plus, it was sort of chilly out still.

Nodding to himself, Izuku resolved himself to going down to the cafeteria. Lunch had only begun less than twenty minutes ago, so he still had plenty of time to find a seat. He had only just stood up when a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"There you are dude!" The loud voice caught him off guard, as Kirishima walked through the doors of the roof access. "Hey guys, he's up here!" He called into the building. A few moments later Iida, Ochako, Mina, and Kirishima had all sat down beside him.

"Hey Deku!" Ochako said as she took the spot next to him, gesturing for him to sit down.

"Hey Midoriya," Mina greeted, "We didn't see you in the cafeteria, so we decided to come find you!" For a second Izuku could only stare at the group as they all put down their bags and pulled out their own lunches, with only Iida having brought something from home.

"H-hey Ashido!" Izuku finally replied, "I d-didn't realize you guys wanted to eat t-t-together!"

"Well of course we did!" Kirishima chimed in, his mouth full of food as he spoke. "Friends eat together!"

"Chewing before talking is considered polite Kirishima. However, he isn't wrong Midoriya. It is customary for friends to eat together during lunch hour to foster camaraderie. Although, it is usually in the lunch hall."

"Ya, what's up with that?" Mina asked, pinching a roll off Kirishima's plate, "Oh quit whining, you have four other rolls! What are you doing all the way up here?"

"O-oh… I just always ate on the roof in middle school. I guess it's just a habit now." Izuku replied, somewhat quietly. Kirishima winced at his tone. He hadn't really experienced it much, but he knew that bullying was a pressing concern in many schools, especially from the lower end public schools. He had seen Izuku's uniform during the entrance exam, and that area was particularly nasty. Judging from the look on Uraraka's face, he guessed that she had picked up on the hidden message as well.

I always ate on the roof in middle school. _I always ate alone_.

"Well, I for one think that is admirable Midoriya! Walking up all those stairs is excellent exercise before and after meals. And the outdoors are amazing." Izuku smiled a half smile, and nodded at Iida.

"Y-you're right Iida. I mean, just look at the v-view!" Izuku said. Iida nodded in reply as he looked around. It truly was magnificent, a grand look at the huge area that was UA's grounds. In the distance the mock cities could be seen, standing out among the massive fields.

"So… how about we get to know each other?" Ochako chimed in. Mina readily agreed, and so the questions began. Lunch passed fairly quickly after that, and by the end of the period Izuku was barely even stuttering. Instead a smile had made its way onto his face as they shared stories of their families. They learned some things about each other schools, like how Kirishima and Mina had gone to the same middle school, and about their homes.

"So wait, you're like totally rich then!" Mina exclaimed. Iida nodded.

"Yes, my family is rather well off. I wouldn't say we are extravagantly wealthy, but due to our family's commitment to the lifestyle of heroes we do live comfortably."

"Wow…" Ochako said. She had told them earlier in the conversation her motivation for becoming a hero, to bring money in for her family. She guessed it wasn't all just a pipe dream.

"And what of you Midoriya? What about your home?" Iida asked. Izuku smiled, rubbing the back of his head.

"Well, there's not really much to say Iida. Me and my mom lived in a nice neighborhood, nothing too fancy though."

"Just your mom and you?"

"Eijiro!" Mina scolded at his tactless comment, but Izuku laughed.

"No no, its fine! It's always been just me and my mom as long as I can remember. Apparently my dad took a job in America some time ago. I'm not sure what he does, but it gives us enough money to live, though my mom still works so we have a little extra. It helped afford the house, though I guess she doesn't need as big of an apartment anymore." He finished thoughtfully.

"So wait, do you not live with her anymore then? You keep talking in the past tense." Mina asked, finishing off her sandwich. Izuku nodded.

"O-oh ya, you guys probably haven't heard, but I actually live in the new campus dorms with Eri!" At the mention of the girl the group paused.

"So… speaking of Eri…" Kirishima began hesitantly.

"What's the deal with you two? And why do you live on campus?" Mina chimed in.

"And you say I have no filter." Kirishima muttered playfully, provoking a "Shut up," from the pink skinned girl.

"I must admit I have been rather curious as well." Iida admitted. Izuku cringed.

"Are you sure you want to know?" He asked quietly, a little bit of his normal cheer gone, "it isn't a very nice story."

Ochako looked over at him worriedly. She had never heard him speak so hollowly before, even when speaking about Bakugo. Of course, Izuku had already told her how he had saved Eri from some villains, but it was still heartbreaking to hear the normally upbeat hero in training speak so heavily.

Kirishima smiled. "C'mon man, how bad could it be?" His sentiment was echoed by the rest of the group. Izuku laughed, but unlike his normal laugh this one was hollow and empty, leaving an uneasy feeling with the three that had yet to hear the tale.

So Izuku told them, looking down at his now clenched fists as the memory played in his head. He spoke quickly, but efficiently about his first encounter with Eri and the man known as Overhaul. The fear, the pain. He mentioned his thoughts during their escape, and how he knew Eri had been through so much… too much. He didn't focus on his own injuries much in the story, figuring that they didn't really need to know just how close it had been. He finished the tale by telling them how he had taken up guardianship over the small girl. After he finished the rooftop was as silent as it had been before the group had arrived, each student taking in the story. Izuku too sat in silence, before a hand was placed over his own clenched, sparking fists.

Looking up, he saw Ochako seated beside him, a question in her eyes. Izuku nodded, before smiling, silently thanking her. She smiled back, squeezing his hand before letting go. Izuku cleared his throat, pulling everyone out

"I'm sorry guys, if that was a l-little too much." The other three shook their heads, and Mina wiped a quick tear from her eye.

"No, we asked. Is she okay now?" Izuku smiled a little bit brighter at this, and nodded at the acid-quirk holder.

"Ya, and she gets better every day! She still has some nightmares every once in a while, but even that is happening less and less. But anyways, because of all that a major villain apparently wants me and Eri really bad, so the staff thought it would be safer for us to stay on campus."

The group nodded at this, and Iida took a moment to praise UA's forethought and preparation.

"Wait!" Ochako suddenly spoke, jumping up from her seat beside Izuku. "But weren't you all alone after you walked me home last night?!" Izuku's eyes widened as she spoke, before he nodded sheepishly.

"Y-ya, I guess so. I hadn't thought about it… I don't normally have a need to go off c-campus much. Even then I usually d-don't worry about it, since I can flicker it's usually safer for me."

"Flicker?" Kirishima asked.

"I believe that is the term used to describe Midoriya's teleporting ability." Iida replied.

"Yes, but that's not the point!" Ochako said, hands on her hips as she turned back to Izuku, who was now rubbing the back of his head. "Just because you can teleport doesn't mean they can't catch you off-guard! How far are you normally allowed to go?"

"Umm… just a little farther than the train station?" Izuku muttered guiltily, looking down.

"Hmmpf." The annoyed sound left her lips almost involuntarily. The other watched as she sat down beside him again, his gaze automatically turning to her as her movement slightly moved the bench he was on.

"Well then you'll have to make sure you stay in that limit from now on, okay?" Izuku nodded. "Seriously Izu, if there's villains out there looking for you, you should be careful." She frowned as she finished. That had been so risky of him!

"You're r-right… I should have thought of that. I'm s-sorry. I r-really hadn't even c-considered that they might be looking for me." Izuku said, embarrassed. She was right, that had been rather stupid of him. He gulped, suddenly even more glad that he had refused to fight Bakugo that night. If the police had found them they would have been in trouble, but if one of those villains had found them? He shuddered. "I'll be sure to be more prepared next time, maybe ask a pro to come along?" Ochako nodded, a determined look on her face. Then she smiled.

"Ya, that would work. Or I could actually make it to the train on time." With that she let out a little laugh. A second later Izuku laughed as well, and soon both were trapped giggling.

"Well I for one agree with Uraraka! That was rather risky Midoriya, better to always be prepared!" Iida chimed in, which for some reason only served to make the two laugh even harder. Kirishima bit back a laugh as he watched the two stop giggling.

"So?" Ochako asked. Izuku nodded as he replied.

"I'll be more careful, promise."

"Good." Ochako nodded. Mina glanced over to Kirishima as the other two smiled and stood up, grabbing their bags (as Iida reminded them all that it was nearly time for class to start). Kirishima grabbed his own bag and winked back at her before falling into step beside Izuku as Mina pulled Ochako ahead of them as they left the rooftop.

"So… you walked her home last night?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Izuku's exasperated groan filled the stairwell a few moments later.

* * *

 **Well, there we go. I wasn't really sure where I wanted to end it, but I really wanted to get all of the combat training into one chapter, so I ended it a little early. Hope you guys enjoyed, and hope you are looking forward to the next chapter!**

 **Until next time, this is Glitch, signing out!**


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